Radioactive Material Sequestration

ABSTRACT

A radioactive material sequestration system may include a radionuclide containment composition dispenser and a sorption based media container. The radionuclide containment composition dispenser may be configured for holding a radionuclide containment composition and be capable of dispensing the radionuclide containment composition to remove radionuclides from a radioactive material. The radionuclide containment composition is a mixture of a clay mineral and water. The sorption based media container may be configured for holding a sorption based media; receiving dispensed radionuclide containment composition; and sequestering the radionuclides. The radioactive material sequestration system may also include a probe.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 60/746,095 to Krekeler et al., filed on May 1,2006, entitled “Radioactive Material Sequestration,” which is herebyincorporated by reference.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an example of a block diagram for creating a radionuclidecontainment composition.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a flow diagram for containing radioactivematerials.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a block diagram of a radioactive materialsequestration system.

FIG. 4 shows an example of sequestering radioactive materials with thesorption based media.

FIG. 5 shows the structure of a 2:1 clay mineral.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a TEM image of lamellar aggregate ofmontmorillonite and an associated SAED diffraction pattern.

FIG. 7 shows another example of a TEM image of a particle exhibitingsome straight edges and an associated SAED diffraction.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a TEM image of a subhedral platy particle ofmontmorillonite showing some near straight edge terminations and anassociated SAED diffraction pattern.

FIG. 9 shows an example of a TEM image of lamellar aggregate ofmontmorillonite used in fluid and an associated SAED diffractionpattern.

FIG. 10 shows another example of a TEM image of lamellar aggregate ofmontmorillonite used in fluid and an associated SAED diffractionpattern.

FIG. 11 also shows another example of a TEM image of lamellar aggregateof montmorillonite used in fluid and an associated SAED diffractionpattern.

FIG. 12 shows yet another example of a TEM image of lamellar aggregateof montmorillonite used in fluid and an associated SAED diffractionpattern.

FIG. 13 shows an example of a TEM image from grain mount showingmorphology of montmorillonite particles.

FIG. 14 shows another example of a TEM image from grain mount showingmorphology of montmorillonite particles.

FIG. 15 also shows another example of a TEM image from grain mountshowing morphology of montmorillonite particles.

FIG. 16 shows yet another example of a TEM image from grain mountshowing morphology of montmorillonite particles.

FIG. 17 shows an EDS compositions plot for Al₂O₃ and SiO₂ in wt % ofmontmorillonite used.

FIG. 18 shows an EDS compositions plot for Al₂O₃ and Fe₂O₃ in wt % ofmontmorillonite used.

FIG. 19 shows an EDS compositions plot for MgO and Fe₂O₃ in wt % ofmontmorillonite used.

FIG. 20 shows examples of TEM images and respective SAED diffractionpatterns of Cs-reacted montmorillonite particles.

FIG. 21 shows examples of TEM images and respective SAED diffractionpatterns of Sr-reacted montmorillonite particles.

FIG. 22 shows a powder X-ray diffraction patterns for palygorskite-richmedia.

FIG. 23 shows an EDS compositions plot for Al₂O₃ and SiO₂.

FIG. 24 shows an EDS compositions plot for Fe₂O₃ and Al₂O₃.

FIG. 25 shows an EDS compositions plot for MgO and Fe₂O₃.

FIG. 26 shows an EDS compositions plot for MgO and Al₂O₃.

FIG. 27 shows an SEM image of palygorskite rich clay used as thesorption based media.

FIG. 28 shows another an SEM image of palygorskite rich clay as thesorption based media.

FIG. 29 shows an additional SEM image of palygorskite rich clay as thesorption based media.

FIG. 30 shows an SEM image of the upper edge termination of the centralplaty particle.

FIG. 31 shows a TEM image of a strontium chloride reacted sample showinginterlocking palygorskite fibers.

FIG. 32 shows TEM images of Cs-exchange with the sorption based media.

FIG. 33 shows TEM images of a mixture of the sorption based media andradioactive containment composition.

FIG. 34 shows additional TEM images of a mixture of the sorption basedmedia and radioactive containment composition.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention embodies compositions, methods and systems forremoving sequestered radioactive materials that have been contained by aradionuclide containment composition.

As an embodiment, radioactive material sequestration system may comprisea radionuclide containment composition dispenser and a sorption basedmedia container. The radionuclide containment composition dispenser,which may hold a radionuclide containment composition, may dispense theradionuclide containment composition to remove radionuclides from aradioactive material. When the radionuclide containment compositioncomes in contact with the radioactive material, the contact generallyallows the radionuclides to be exchanged with cations in theradionuclide containment composition. As a result, an aqueous slurry maybe formed. The radionuclides can be collected from the aqueous slurry byusing a sorption based media, which may be stored in the sorption basedmedia container. Besides serving as a container for holding the sorptionbased media, the sorption based media container can also be configuredfor receiving the dispensed radionuclide containment composition andsequestering the radionuclides.

As another embodiment, the radionuclide containment composition maycomprise a mixture of a clay mineral and water, forming an aqueous claysuspension. The mixture may be refined into a uniform suspension byfiltering the mixture to remove coarse material.

As another embodiment, the clay mineral is montmorillonite.

As another embodiment, the weight ratio of the clay mineral to the waterranges from 1:99 to 99:1.

As another embodiment, the mixture of the clay mineral and water isrefined by using sieves to filter and remove coarse material. Theaperture size of the sieves can range from 300 μm to <38 μm. Typically,a minimum size of 5 microns was found to be the functional limit toproduce materials efficiently.

As another embodiment, the sorption based media is a clay mineral fromthe palygorskite-sepiolite mineral group.

As another embodiment, the sorption based media may sequesterradioactive materials by chemical ion exchange, mechanical separation offloccules, or both.

As another embodiment, to move the aqueous slurry towards the sorptionbased media, a probe may be used.

As another embodiment, the probe is an ultrasonic probe.

As another embodiment, the probe may have an illuminator device.Examples include flashlights, fluorescent lights, night visionapparatuses, electroluminescent devices, light emitting diodes, etc.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a camera.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a video camera.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a digital camera.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a radiation detector.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a chemical sensor.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a sensor for biologicalmaterials.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a sensor for bioweapons,including but not limited to, anthrax, smallpox, and similar agents.

As another embodiment, the probe may have a sensor for chemical weapons,including but not limited to, VX, sarin, ricin, chlorine, hydrofluoricacid and similar materials.

I. Introduction

Radioactive isotopes (also referred to herein as radionuclides) arenaturally occurring in the environment or are created using nucleartechnologies, such as nuclear reactors, etc. Human exposure to manytypes of radioactive isotopes may lead to several detrimental healtheffects, such as cancer, skin burn, organ malfunction, etc. Examples ofradioactive isotopes, which are of concern to human health, include, butare not limited to, americium-241 (²⁴¹Am), cesium (¹³⁴Cs, ¹³⁷Cs),cobalt-60 (⁶⁰Co), iodine-131 (¹³¹I), iridium-192 (¹⁹²Ir), plutonium(²³⁸Pu, ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu, and ²⁴²Pu), strontium-90 (⁹⁰Sr), uranium-235(²³⁵U), uranium-238 (²³⁸U) and chlorine-36 (³⁶Cl).

Radiological materials can be weaponized in many forms by terrorists andused for terrorist attacks. For instance, materials can be packed in atraditional explosive device and detonated in a public area. Suchdeployment is commonly referred to as a radiological dirty bomb or aradiological dispersal device (RDD).

Because of the possibility of RDD use, a major concern of security dealswith water sources, such as public water supplies, rivers, lakes,streams, aquifers, water wells, water storage tanks, water treatmentplants, bottling facilities (e.g., water, soda, beer, etc.), sewers andother drainage systems, water pipes, marsh lands, swimming pools, etc.Water is an absolute necessity. If radioactive and/or hazardousmaterials were used as chemical weapons or dirty bombs and suchmaterials somehow entered into any water supply, catastrophic resultscan easily occur.

Similar health effects can also occur in nonwater environments or areaswhere some amount water can be found. For example, dirty bombs orchemical weapons with radioactive material used in parks, buildings,streets, cars, etc. can also have similar deleterious and/orcarcinogenic health effects.

One radioactive material of current interest that may be used in RDD isradioactive chloride. While two stable isotopes of chlorine, ³⁵Cl and³⁷Cl, occur naturally, several radioactive isotopes of chlorine alsoexist, as indicated in TABLE 1.

TABLE 1 Radioactive Isotopes of Chlorine Nuclear magnetic Isotope MassHalf-life Mode of decay Nuclear spin moment ³⁶Cl 35.9683 301,000 yearsβ⁻ to ³⁶Ar 0 1.28547 ³⁸Cl 37.968 37.2 minutes β⁻ to ³⁸Ar 2 2.05 ³⁹Cl38.968 55.6 minutes β⁻ to ³⁹Ar 3\2 ⁴⁰Cl 39.9704 1.38 minutes β⁻ to ⁴⁰Ar2 ⁴¹Cl 40.9707 34 seconds β⁻ to ⁴¹Ar ⁴²Cl 41.9732 6.8 seconds β⁻ to ⁴²Ar⁴³Cl 42.9742 3.3 seconds β⁻ to ⁴³Ar

Of particular concern is ³⁶Cl, which, as shown in TABLE 1, has ahalf-life of approximately 301,000 years. Its specific activity is about0.033 (Ci/g) and decays via beta particle emission (generally 98% ofdecay occurs through this mechanism) and electron capture. The radiationenergy is about 0.027 MeV. Lifetime cancer mortality risk coefficientfor inhalation is about 9.6×10⁻¹¹ pCi. Lifetime cancer mortality riskcoefficient for ingestion is about 2.9×10⁻¹² pCi. The ³⁶Cl isotope istypically found naturally in very minute quantities from cosmogenicradiation interactions with ³⁶Ar in the atmosphere, and may be used as ageochronological tool. Additionally, this isotope may also be found inthe nuclear water stream. Hence, this isotope can be a component in RDD.It may also become an environmental concern if released into theenvironment.

Previously, ³⁶Cl has been produced in large quantities during nuclearweapons testing between 1952 and 1958. The mode of production wasachieved by irradiation of seawater. For instance, at the U.S.Department of Energy, Hanford site, graphite neutron moderation materialin plutonium production reactors was treated with Cl₂ gas at hightemperatures. The ³⁵Cl that remained in the reactors was converted to³⁶Cl. Currently, ³⁶Cl may be found in these reactors, as well as similarreactors, and waste streams from them. The amount of ³⁶Cl that has beengenerated by the former Soviet Union and other countries with nuclearcapabilities or developing capabilities remain unclear.

Another radioactive material that may be used in RDD is cesium-137(¹³⁷Cs). Cesium-137 commonly occurs as ¹³⁷CsCl and as a major componentof nuclear waste stream generated from nuclear technologies worldwide.

¹³⁷Cs decays by emission of beta particles and gamma rays to barium-137m(¹³⁷Ba), a short-lived decay product, which in turn decays to anon-radioactive form of barium (¹³⁴Ba). ¹³⁷Cs has a half-life ofapproximately 30 years.

As one of the most common radioactive isotopes used in variousindustries, ¹³⁷Cs can be implemented in numerous devices. Examplesinclude, but are not limited to, moisture-density gauges in theconstruction industry, leveling gauges in the piping industry, thicknessgauges in industries (such as metal, paper and film), and well-loggingdevices in the drilling industry.

Another fairly common radioactive isotope is ¹³⁴Cs. Having similarproperties to ¹³⁷Cs, ¹³⁴Cs decays (e.g., beta decay) to ¹³⁴Ba. The halflife of ¹³⁴Cs is approximately 2 years. ¹³⁴Cs may be used inphotoelectric cells in ion propulsion systems under development.

However, when comparing ¹³⁷Cs with ¹³⁴Cs, ¹³⁷Cs tends to have moresignificant environment and health concerns than ¹³⁴Cs. For instance,¹³⁷Cs is often a greater environmental contaminant than ¹³⁴Cs. Moreover,although ¹³⁷Cs is sometimes used in medical therapies to treat cancer,exposure to ¹³⁷Cs (like other radionuclides) can also increase the riskof cancer and damage tissue because of its strong gamma ray source.Nonetheless, ¹³⁴Cs can still be a concern for the environment.

Because of cesium's chemical nature, cesium can easily move through theenvironment, and thus making the cleanup of ¹³⁷Cs releases difficult.For example in April 1986, large amounts of ¹³⁷Cs were released duringthe Chernobyl incident. Significant amounts of ¹³⁷Cs were deposited inEurope and Asia. Today, ¹³⁷Cs can still be found in those areas.According to Great Britain's National Radiological Protection Board,there may be up to 1,000 additional cancers over the next 70 years amongthe population of Western Europe exposed to fallout from the nuclearaccident at Chernobyl, in part due to ¹³⁷Cs. Yet, of course, themagnitude of the health risk depends on exposure conditions. Theseconditions include factors such as strength of the source, length ofexposure, distance from the source, and whether there was shieldingbetween the person and the source (such as metal plating).

Although several routes may exist in delivering ¹³⁷Cs as a weapon, oneexpected route is dispersing ¹³⁷Cs in the form of radioactive cesiumchloride powder (¹³⁷CsCl) in populated areas (e.g., downtowns, malls,etc.). Another anticipated route of dispersing ¹³⁷Cs is through watersupplies. For example, if 5 kg of ¹³⁷CsCl were deposited and dispersed(whether via a dirty bomb or other means) in a large city (e.g.,Chicago) having 5 m.p.h. winds, a computer model generated by the LosAlamos National Labs predicts that approximately 300 city blocks wouldbe affected one hour after detonation. Risk of cancer may increase from1 to 10-fold. The high solubility in water and the relatively lowhardness of ¹³⁷CsCl are both properties that are normally characteristicof an effective “radiological powder weapon.”

In addition to ¹³⁷Cs, it is well within the scope of the presentinvention that other radioactive isotopes may be used as the radioactiveingredient in a radioactive material for use in a dirty bomb or someform of weapon. Examples include all of the radioactive isotopespreviously mentioned.

To contain dispersed radioactive material as a weapon (e.g., RDD) havinga radioactive isotope or radionuclide, a radionuclide containmentcomposition may be used. The radionuclide containment composition isdefined as an aqueous clay suspension comprising a mixture of a claymineral and water. This suspension may be filtered to remove residualcoarse material to impart a processed uniform suspension.

II. Radioactive Material Sequestration Process

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the overall radioactive materialsequestration may begin by mixing a clay mineral 105 with water 110 toform an aqueous clay suspension 115, S205. The aqueous clay suspension115 can be refined by filtering 120 to remove residual coarse materialS210. Filtering may be achieved by using sieves with aperture sizesranging from 300 μm to <38 μm. The resulting refined aqueous claysuspension may be referred to hereinafter as radionuclide containmentcomposition 125. The radionuclide containment composition 125 may beapplied to a radioactive material S215. The application may form anaqueous slurry. Radioactive nuclides trapped within this aqueous slurrymay be removed using a sorption based media S220. A probe may be used toassist the aqueous slurry to come into contact with the sorption basedmedia.

As shown in FIG. 3, the present invention also embodies a radioactivematerial sequestration system 305. The radioactive materialsequestration system 305 may comprise a radioactive containmentcomposition dispenser 310 and a sorption based media container 315. Theradioactive containment composition dispenser 310 may be configured forholding a radionuclide containment composition 125 and being capable ofdispensing said radionuclide containment composition 125 to removeradionuclides from one or more radioactive materials. The sorption basedmedia container 315 may be configured for holding a sorption basedmedia; receiving dispensed radionuclide containment composition 125; andsequestering radionuclides.

The radioactive material sequestration system 305 can be operatedmanually or automatically. Manual operation may include turning on/off arelease mechanism (e.g., a switch or valve, etc.). Automatic operationmay include the use of sensors that automatically dispenses theradioactive containment composition 125 from the radioactive containmentcomposition dispenser 310 when the sensors detect the presence ofradionuclides, chemicals, biohazardous materials, etc. or when a certainthreshold of radioactivity is met.

The radioactive material sequestration system 305 may also incorporate awireless mechanism (e.g., card or other device) that allows the systemto be operated remotely and/or wirelessly. A computer or a device mayexecute a computer-readable program to instruct the radioactivecontainment composition dispenser 310 to dispense the radionuclidecontainment composition 125. It may also instruct the timing, amount andrate of dispensing. It may also indicate the levels of radionuclidecontainment composition 125 remaining in the radioactive containmentcomposition dispenser 310.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of how the sorption based media cansequester radioactive materials. As exemplified in A, a pipe 405 maycontain water and scale. In B, the pipe 410 may be contaminated withradioactive materials 415. In C, the radionuclide containmentcomposition 125 having a montmorillonite-based liquid is injected intothe pipe 420. The combination of the radionuclide containmentcomposition 125 and radioactive materials 415 may create an aqueousslurry 425. It is possible that the radionuclide containment composition125 may be poured into the pipe 420. Alternatively, it 125 may or bedispersed into the pipe 420 from a radionuclide containment compositiondispenser 310. In D, after such composition 125 is sent, a probe 435,such as an ultrasonic probe, may be inserted into the pipe 430. Theprobe 435 is activated to encapsulate and remove radioactive materialsand/or scale 440. This radioactive waste mixture 440 may pass throughsorption based media 445, which may for instance comprisepalygorskite-rich media, to collect floccules and fine polish the water.

Using a probe may provide a multitude of advantages. For instance, theprobe can help move the aqueous slurry towards the sorption based media.The probe may be an ultrasonic probe that sends sonic pulses to move theaqueous slurry. It may also be a rod, pipe cleaner, flexible brush, etc.

To help one see where the radioactive materials and/or aqueous slurrymay be present, the probe may have an illuminator device, camera, videocamera, digital camera, etc. Examples of the illuminator device includeflashlights, fluorescent lights, night vision apparatuses,electroluminescent devices, light emitting diodes, etc.

The probe may even include a detector or sensor to detect radioactive,chemical and/or biological materials. Nonlimiting examples of detectorsinclude a radiation detector, a chemical sensor, a sensor for biologicalmaterials, a sensor for bioweapons, including but not limited to,anthrax, smallpox, and similar agents, etc.

The present invention can be used to clean or remediate water pipes thathave been affected by radiological contaminants or attacks. Such pipesinclude, but are not limited to, any pipe system on military or navalvessels, cargo ships, cruise ships, yachts, etc; any pipe systemassociated with water supply systems for rural and/or urban areas,military bases, agricultural areas, food supplies and/or channels, etc;any stormwater, sewer or drainage pipe systems; etc.

The present invention can also be used in combination with variousmethods of cleaning, including but not limited to sonic cleaning,vibrational cleaning, rotational cleaning, and chemical cleaning, suchas surface bleaching. Cleaning methods (e.g., sonic, vibrational,rotational, chemical cleaning, etc.) of pipe systems may be combinedwith the use of one or more probes.

The present invention may even be used to clean or remediate reservoirs,aqueducts, water treatment plants, etc.

A. Clay Mineral

The clay mineral 105 is a layer silicate having at least one tetrahedralsheet 505 and an octahedral sheet 510, as shown in FIG. 5.

The tetrahedral sheet 505 is made up of a layer of horizontally linked,tetrahedral-shaped units coordinated to oxygen atoms and arranged in ahexagonal pattern. Each unit may include a central coordinated atom(e.g., Mg²⁺, Si⁴⁺, Al³⁺, Fe³⁺, etc.) surrounded by (and maybe bonded to)oxygen atoms that, in turn, may be linked with other nearby atoms (e.g.,Mg²⁺, Si⁴⁺, Al³⁺, Fe³⁺ etc.).

The octahedral sheet 510 is made up of a layer of horizontally linked,octahedral-shaped units that may also serve as one of the basicstructural components of silicate clay minerals. Arranged in anoctahedral pattern, each unit may include a central coordinated metallicatom (e.g., Al³⁺, Mg²⁺, Fe³⁺, Zn²⁺, Fe²⁺, etc.) surrounded by (and maybebonded to) a oxygen atoms and/or hydroxyl groups. The oxygen atomsand/or hydroxyl groups may be linked with other nearby metal atoms(e.g., Al³⁺, Mg²⁺, Fe³⁺, Zn²⁺, Fe²⁺, etc.). This combination may serveas inter-unit linkages that hold the sheet together.

Within both tetrahedral and octahedral layers, O²⁻ and/or OH⁻ ions maybe present.

Where only one tetrahedral and one octahedral sheet are present for eachlayer, the clay is known as a 1:1 clay. Where, for each layer, there aretwo tetrahedral sheets with the unshared vertex of each sheet pointingtowards each other and forming each side of the octahedral sheet 520,the clay is known as a 2:1 clay. As one embodiment of the presentinvention, either 1:1 or 2:1 clays, or a combination of the two, may beused.

As another embodiment, the clays of interest generally fall within thesilicate class. As yet another embodiment, the subclass may bephyllosilicates. Examples include, but are not limited to, those fromthe smectite group, such as montmorillonite, bentonite, beidellite,hectorite, nontronite, R0 illite-smectite, R1 illite smectite,sauconite, saponite, stevensite, etc. Montmorillonite may include, butis not limited to, montmorillonite, calcium-montmorillonite(Ca-montmorillonite), magnesium-montmorillonite (Mg-montmorillonite),sodium-montmorillonite (Na-montmorillonite), cesium-montmorillonite(Cs-montmorillonite), etc. Another example is illite-smectites. Thecrystalline structure includes a stack of layers interspaced with atleast one interlayer site 525. Each interlayer site may include cations(e.g., Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, etc.) 515 or a combination of cations and water. Afurther example is the palygorskite group, such as palygorskite,sepiolite, tuperssuatsiaite, yofortierite, falconite, loughlinite,ferrisepiolite, Mn-sepiolite, Fe-palygorskite, Mn-palygorskite, etc.

Depending on the composition of the tetrahedral 505 and octahedral 510sheets, the layers may either have no charge or will have a net negativecharge. If the layers are neutral in charge, the tetrahedral 505 andoctahedral 510 sheets are likely to be held by weak van der Waalsforces. If the layers are charged, this charge may be balanced byinterlayer cations.

In one embodiment, the clay mineral 105 is montmorillonite.Montmorillonite is a common smectite having one layer of aluminum atoms(i.e., middle layer) connected to two opposing layers of silicon atoms(i.e., outer layer) in a 2:1 layer structure. One version of the basicchemical formula, as a hydrous magnesium aluminum silicate, isMgAl₂Si₅O₁₄.nH₂O or MgO.Al₂O₃5SiO₂.nH₂O, where n for both may vary from5 to 8. H₂O may be approximately 20.0 to 25.0 percent, of which half ofthis volume may be found at a temperature of about 100° C. Some calciummay replace some of the magnesium. Alternatively, the chemical formulafor montmorillonite may also be written as:

R_(0.33)(Al_(1.67)Mg_(0.33))Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂)  (1).

VI can be equal to −0.33; IV can be equal to 0. VI (denoted as suchbecause of the 6-fold coordination) indicates the octahedral sheet andits charge. IV (denoted as such because of the 4-fold coordination)indicates the tetrahedral sheet and its charge. R is the exchangeablecation in the interlayer space. Variations of this chemical formula arealso well known in the art.

Montmorillonite is a chief constituent of bentonite, a clay-likematerial which may be formed by altering volcanic ash. Bentonite is thename of the rock which includes largely of the mineral montmorillonite.Besides bentonite, montmorillonite may also be found in granitepegmatites as an altered product of some silicate mineral.Montmorillonite may be a major constituent of shales and clay depositsin rocks that may be Jurassic in age or younger.

In another embodiment, the clay mineral 105 is Na-montmorillonite.Na-montmorillonite is a 2:1 layer silicate which may be derived frombentonite. Two tetrahedral sheets, which may be composed predominantlyof Si⁴⁺ tetrahedrons, may be bonded to an octahedral sheet, which may becomposed of Mg²⁺, Al³⁺ and Fe³⁺ octahedrons. Each Si⁴⁺ tetrahedron maybe coordinated to oxygen atoms. Each octahedron may be coordinated tooxygen atoms and/or hydroxyl groups.

It should be noted that unless otherwise specified (e.g., distinguishedseparately), the description described herein with respect tomontmorillonite also applies to M-montmorillonite, where M is anexchangeable cation, such as Cs and Sr.

Naturally, montmorillonite tends to have defects in its crystalstructure. Most evident is the turbostratic stacking of the 2:1 layers.This defect structure is believed to be the cause of the smallcrystallite size commonly observed. Having a flake-like shape resemblinga corn flake, crystallites commonly vary in diameter from approximately10 micrometers to approximately 0.01 micrometers.

A distinguishing feature of montmorillonite is its ability to swell withwater. After surpassing a certain swelling threshold, montmorillonitetends to slump and goes into pieces. Montmorillonite can expand fromapproximately 12 Å to approximately 140 Å in aqueous systems.Fundamentally, the reason for this expansion is that cation substitution(e.g., Mg²⁺ for Al³⁺) in the octahedral sheet combined with minimalcation substitution (e.g., Al³⁺ or Si⁴⁺) in the tetrahedral sheet maygive rise to a low negative charge on the 2:1 layer. This result maycause the crystal structure to have weak bonding along (001). Inessence, this effect may give rise to exchange sites between the 2:1layer that may take up M⁺ or M²⁺ cations from aqueous solutions.

The low negative charge on the 2:1 layer may enable cation exchange totake place. The charge deficiency in the 2:1 layer may need to bebalanced by exchangeable cations. The quantity of cations required tocreate a net charge balance is called the cation exchange capacity.

Commonly, the cation exchange capacity of montmorillonite varies betweenabout 80 and about 150 meq/100 g. The pH dependence on this physicalproperty may be absent or negligible. The internal charge deficiency ofthe clay mineral 105 may result in a net negative charge of theparticle. Examples of exchangeable cations include, but are not limitedto, sodium, calcium, magnesium, and potassium.

Cation exchangeability tends to enable montmorillonite to remove heavymetals (e.g., Hg, Zn, Cd, Cu, Pb, As, etc.), alkaloids, alkalines, etc.from water. Removal of heavy metals is often associated with, interalia, significant impacts, such as wastewater treatment. Additionally,ion exchange may also remove cationic and/or neutral organics, resultingin intercalate and/or polymer interaction.

The combination of ion exchange capacity and capacity to swell may allowthe material to form floccules with suspended solids that can beprecipitated out. Removal of floccules may be achieved using a sorptionbased media, washing and/or centrifugation.

These features, along with its chemical composition, are key elements tomontmorillonite's exchange behavior with cesium and other cations.

B. Liquids

The water 110 used to create the aqueous clay suspension 115 may be tapwater, distilled water, de-ionized water, etc.

Where it is desirable to remove microbes from the clay mineral, theaqueous clay suspension 115 may be mixed with a liquid mixture. As anexample, the liquid mixture may include part water 110 and some otherliquid, such as hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide may be advantageousfor decontaminating the clay mineral 105 from bacteria, viruses, othermicroparasites, parasites, etc. Where the liquid mixture is parthydrogen peroxide and part water 110, the weight ratio of hydrogenperoxide to water 110 may range from about 1:99 to about 1:2.

The present invention also allows a silver-based solution to be added.For instance, the silver-based solution may be silver nitrate solution(also referred to herein as one of the following: AgNO₃, AgNO₃ solutionor AgNO₃ solution (aq)).

Alternatively, the silver-based solution may be silver hydroxidesolution (also referred to herein as AgOH (aq)). Because AgOH (aq) haslow solubility, it may be heated to allow for more silver ions in thesolution. Heating may range, for example, from ˜100° F. to −180° F.

As an exemplified embodiment, silver nitrate solution may be added tothe aqueous slurry after the radionuclide containment composition 125has come in contact with a radioactive material to create an aqueousslurry S215. The product may be referred to as a suspension.

In another embodiment, the AgNO₃ solution may also be used as apretreatment step before sequestration by the clay mineral 105 and water110 mixture for discovering a stock of poisonous or radioactivematerials. In this instance, the AgNO₃ solution may be applied to theclay mineral 105. After this application, water 110 may then be added tothis pretreated clay mineral 105 to form the aqueous clay suspension115. The aqueous clay suspension 115 may be refined 120 by using sievesto filter coarse materials. After filtering, the resulting product(i.e., radionuclide containment composition 125) may be applied to aradioactive material. To the aqueous slurry that may be formed, asilver-based solution may be added.

The minimum ratio of silver-based solution to aqueous slurry is about1:20. As one embodiment, the ratio of silver nitrate solution to aqueousslurry is 1:4.

As an embodiment, adding a silver based solution to the aqueous slurryor as a pretreatment step may help remove chloride ions. These chlorideions may be found where the radioactive materials are present or havebeen dispersed, such as pipes, water aqueducts, reservoirs, warehouses,ground, public forums, etc.

Because silver nitrate has inherent antibacterial/antiseptic properties,it may also serve as an antibacterial/antiseptic agent.

The addition of AgNO₃ solution may produce sodium nitrate as abyproduct. To remove the sodium nitrate, the suspension may be heated.Temperature may vary. For example, the temperature may be approximately475° F. The length of heating may also vary. For example, heating maytake 3 hours.

C. Filters

Once the mixture is created and allowed to sit, the aqueous claysuspension 115 may be refined by using a filter 120, S210, such as asieve. Filtering may help remove coarse material. One or more containers(e.g., beaker, bucket, silo, etc.) may be used to receive the filteredaqueous clay suspension 115.

In general, where a sieve is exercised, smaller sieve apertures tend toresult in a processed suspension that is more uniform with less residualcoarse material. Hence, embodied sieve aperture sizes may range from 300μm to <38 μm. A minimum of 5 μm appears to be the functional limit forproducing fluids. Although some fragments of coarse material (orfractions) may penetrate through the filter, they contribute minimallyto the aqueous clay suspension 115 being employed. Nevertheless, thepenetrable fragments may be used for forensic purposes to identifyoriginal materials.

The makeup and grain size of the filtered coarse fractions may beanalyzed to determine the composition of the clay mineral 105. Analysismay be achieved by, for instance, back scatter scanning electronmicroscopy. Having mineralogical data may provide some insight into thenature of the clay minerals used.

D. Radionuclide Containment

Radionuclides from radioactive materials may be contained by contactingthe radioactive material with a radionuclide containment composition toform an aqueous slurry. It should be noted that it is alternativelypossible to contact the radioactive material with an aqueous claysuspension 115 to form the aqueous slurry.

Generally, this aqueous clay suspension 115 is a processed, uniformsuspension (having a possible gel-like consistency) comprising a claymineral 105 mixed with water 110. The aqueous clay suspension 115 may berefined 120 to filter and remove coarse materials S210. This filteringcan generate a smoother consistency. If refined, the composition may bereferred to as a radionuclide containment composition 125.

At the point of contact between the radioactive material and aqueousclay suspension (refined or unrefined) 115, S215, radionuclides may beabsorbed by the aqueous clay suspension 115. The result may be anaqueous slurry.

The radioactive material may include, but are not limited to, compoundshaving at least one of the following radionuclide: ²⁴¹Am, ¹³⁴Cs, ¹³⁷Cs,⁶⁰Co, ¹³¹I, ¹⁹²Ir, ²³⁸Pu, ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu, ²⁴²Pu, ⁹⁰Sr, ²³⁵U and ²³⁸U. Theradioactive material may also include a radioactive chloride, asdiscussed earlier.

For example, as an embodiment, the radioactive material is ¹³⁷CsCl.Cesium has an affinity to bond with chloride ions. When the two ions arecombined, a crystallized powder is formed. Combining ¹³⁷Cs ions andchloride ions can produce ¹³⁷CsCl.

As another embodiment, the radioactive material is CsCl, where theradionuclide is a radioactive chloride, such as ³⁶Cl.

As another embodiment, other radioactive materials involving radioactivechloride may include, but are not limited to, CsCl, RaCl₂, SrCl₂.6H₂O,BaCl₂, HgCl, HgCl₂, PbCl₂, CdCl₂, ZnCl₂, CoCl₂, etc. Additionally, othernonlimiting examples of poisonous or radioactive chloride compoundsinclude uranium, actinide and lanthanide chlorides.

As another embodiment, the clay mineral 105 used to contain ¹³⁷CsCl maybe any smectite mineral.

Using montmorillonite as an exemplified embodiment of smectite and¹³⁷CsCl as the exemplified radioactive material, these selections may bebased on a variety of factors. One, montmorillonite is generallyexpandable. Two, because of montmorillonite has the ability to exchangealkali cations in aqueous systems, Cs⁺ cations may be readily exchangedwhen these two are combined. Commonly, when Cs is exchanged, Cs isirreversibly sorbed on smectite minerals. This interaction can beexploited for transporting and storing ¹³⁷CsCl and could be used torespond to ¹³⁷CsCl release. Three, there are many sources ofmontmorillonite. Four, montmorillonite is comparatively low in cost.

The radionuclide containment composition 125 may be applied to powder oraqueous solutions of radioactive materials using numerous techniques.Techniques include, but are not limited to, contacting, spraying (e.g.,using a spray bottle, squirt gun, hose, etc.), pouring, covering,mixing, etc. Because of the rheological properties of the aqueous claysuspension 115, little to no agitation and/or dispersal of theradioactive material should occur.

Optionally, montmorillonite may be pretreated with aqueous saltsolution, such as NaCl, NaOH, and NaClO₄. Where NaCl is used forpretreatment, montmorillonite's sorption of Na⁺ cations is expected toproduce Na-montomorillonite. Having an aqueous or gel-like consistency,this exchanged composition may be washed to remove excess aqueous saltsolution. Additionally, the exchanged composition may be tested forresidual anions by using a precipitating agent (e.g., silver nitrate,etc.).

The radionuclide containment composition 125 may be applied to powder oraqueous solutions of radioactive materials using numerous techniques.Techniques include, but are not limited to, contacting, spraying (e.g.,using a spray bottle, squirt gun, hose, etc.), pouring, covering,mixing, etc. Because of the rheological properties of the aqueous claysuspension, little to no agitation and/or dispersal of the radioactivematerial should occur.

Using ¹³⁷CsCl for demonstrative purposes, as a result of applying theaqueous clay suspension 115 onto ¹³⁷CsCl, the aqueous clay suspension115 may directly and irreversibly absorb ¹³⁷Cs cations. It may be thecase where exchange occurs spontaneously or essentially immediately. Adramatic change in the rheological properties should occur where theaqueous/gel-like consistency of the radionuclide containment composition125 disappears and becomes a waxy paste in the Cs-montmorillonite form.

In general, a waxy paste, or alternatively aqueous slurry, may be formedafter a radionuclide containment composition contacts a radioactivematerial. This aqueous slurry may then be contacted with a sorptionbased media. This latter contacting is a different containment stagethat is separate from the initial containment stage (i.e., the formercontacting). To assist this latter contacting, a probe may be used.Examples of probes include sonic and/or ultrasonic probes, magneticprobes, electrical probes, mechanical probes (e.g., rods, plungingdevices, etc.), oil and similar oily substances, detergents, pressurizedair, pressurized water, etc. Additionally, gravity or gravitationalprobes may be used. Any combination of probes may also be used.

E. Sorption Based Media

Sorption based media is a composition used to remove and sequesterradionuclides captured by the aqueous slurry. Sequestering may beachieved by chemical ion exchange with the radionuclides (which may befound in the aqueous slurry and/or radioactive material), mechanicalseparation of floccules (which may be formed when the radionuclidecontainment composition contacts a radioactive material), or acombination of the two.

The sorption based media may include one or more different clayminerals. In one embodiment, a clay mineral from thepalygorskite-sepiolite mineral group (also sometimes referred to aspalygorskite group), such as palygorskite, may be used as the primarymineral for the sorption based media. Also known as attapulgite,palygorskite is a 2:1 clay mineral that is known to have a high sorptioncapacity for organic molecules. Overall, palygorskite comprises fibrousfelted masses as well as disseminated grains and platy crystals. Thetetrahedral sheet tends to be continuous; the octahedral sheet tends tobe discontinuous. The general formula can be presented as:

(Mg_(5−y−z)R³⁺ _(y))(Si_(8−x)R³⁺ _(x))O₂₀(OH)₂(OH₂)₄R²⁺_((x−y+2z)/2)(H₂O)₄  (2)

where R²⁺ _((x−y+2z)/2) and (H₂O) represent the charge balancing cationsand water in the rectangular cavities, y is the fraction of Mgsubstituted by Al in the octahedral sheet, and x is the fraction of Sisubstituted by Al in the tetrahedral sheet. Isomorphous substitution isoften relatively low in the tetrahedral sheet, with Al occupying 0.01 to0.09 of 8 tetrahedral sites. On the contrary, isomorphous substitutionis relatively high in the octahedral sheet, with Al occupying 28-59% ofthe octahedral sites. Other cations, including but not limited to Fe²⁺,Fe³⁺ and Mn are also present.

Other examples of clay minerals from the palygorskite group that can beused as the sorption based media include, but are not limited to,palygorskite, sepiolite, tuperssuatsiaite, yofortierite, falconite,loughlinite, ferrisepiolite, Mn-sepiolite, Fe-palygorskite,Mn-palygorskite.

It is also possible that as another embodiment, other clays that may beused as the sorption based media fall within the silicate class. As yetanother embodiment, the subclass may be phyllosilicates. Examplesinclude, but are not limited to, those from the smectite group.

In an embodiment, the sorption based media may comprisepalygorskite-rich media made of ˜50%-˜80% palygorskite. In addition, thesorption based media may also comprise ˜10%-40% in other minerals, suchas montmorillonite, illite and kaolinite. Furthermore, ˜10% (or less) inimpurities, such as quartz, feldspar and titanium oxide, may also existin the sorption based media. Having a mixture of clays may aid orenhance the radionuclide sorption ability.

The sorption based media may be housed in a separated compartment orcontainer.

III. Stability of the Aqueous Clay Suspension

To demonstrate the stability of aqueous clay suspension 115 (bothrefined and unrefined) when applied to a radioactive chloride material,such as ¹³⁷CsCl, which is a typical substance encountered in a dirtybomb, the aqueous clay suspension 115 may be aged. There is norestrictive time limit in the aging process since the aging process may,depending on a user's desires, last from minutes to years. For instance,the aging process may last for 10 months.

The pH values for reacted aqueous clay suspension 115 may vary from ˜3to ˜4.65. Dissolution of the clay mineral 105, such as montmorillonite,is a possibility under these pH conditions.

A new rate law described by Keren Amram and Jiwchar Ganor may be appliedunder these pH conditions. Cf. Amram, K. and Ganor, J., 69 Geochimica etCosmochimica Acta 2535-2546 (2005). Their rate law for montmorillonite(and also broadly applicable to smectites) is:

Rate=220·e ^(−17460/RT)·(3×10⁻⁶ ·e ^(10700/RT) ·a _(H+))/(1+3×10⁻⁶ ·e^(10700/RT) ·a _(H+))  (1)

Id. Their work may serve as a worst case scenario for dissolution forthe present invention because their dissolution investigation is set upbased on flow-through reactor experiments.

In a vast majority of applications, the present invention may be used inbatch-mode, where the material will be placed in containers. Amram andGanor's rate law tends to be appropriate for the present inventionbecause, analogously, they used montmorillonite with a similar chemicalcomposition similar to the present invention. Furthermore, Amram andGanor found that dissolution rates were not affected by the addition ofup to 0.3 M NaNO₃, a compound that is likely to be produced in thepresent invention from the exchange of Na⁺ in the startingmontmorillonite and the resulting NO₃ ⁻.

Amram and Ganor performed experiments using flow-through reactors inthermostatic water at temperatures of 25° C., 50° C. and 70° C.±0.1° C.Cf. Amram, K. and Ganor, J., 69 Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta2535-2546 (2005). The dissolution rates obtained were based on therelease of Si and Al at a steady state. Id. Their results indicatedissolution rate increases with temperature and decreases withincreasing pH. Id. They developed a specific model to describe theeffect of temperature and pH on the dissolution of smectite. Id. Theirmodel is linearly proportional to concentrations of absorbed protons onthe surface of the mineral. Id. They also described proton sorptionusing a Langmuir adsorption isotherm. Id.

The dissolution rates obtained by Amram and Ganor varied from2.6±0.5×10⁻¹² mol g⁻¹s⁻¹ to 2.8±0.5×10⁻¹² mol g⁻¹s⁻¹. Cf. Amram, K. andGanor, J., 69 Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 2535-2546 (2005).Therefore, the total range possible for the rate of dissolution ofmontmorillonite is approximately 2.1×10⁻¹² mol g⁻¹s⁻¹ to 3.3×10¹² molg⁻¹s⁻¹.

These results equate to a range of mass loss (i.e., in mol g) betweenapproximately 0.000066 and 0.00011 per year. A conservative estimationbased on these numbers indicates that the montmorillonite will be stablefor at least 100 years.

IV. Experiments

Volclay SPV 200, an American Colloid product, is placed in aqueoussuspension using a ratio range of 20 oz to 60 oz volume Volclay 200 to 5gallons of water 110.

Optionally, prior to saturation with water 110, Volclay SPV 200 may bepretreated with aqueous NaCl solution. Alternatively, the Volclay SPV200 may be pretreated with either aqueous NaOH or NaClO₄. This processmay create an exchanged composition wherein the ions in the interlayerof montmorillonite may be exchanged with Na⁺ (aq) from the aqueous saltsolution. Saturation was allowed to occur overnight. After saturation,the exchanged composition washed. The process was repeated 5 times toallow for full exchange to take place. Afterwards, the exchangedcomposition can be washed and tested for residual anions from theaqueous salt solution.

The material is mixed mechanically for 5 minutes and is allowed to standovernight. The suspension is then filtered through a 45 μm metal screento remove coarse material. The filtration process breaks up the materialand imparts a uniform suspension.

For preparing and verifying the properties of the radionuclidecontainment composition, the present invention also relies on theteachings of PCT Patent Application No. PCT/US2006/019763 to Krekeler etal., filed on May 22, 2006, entitled “Counter Weapon Containment” andPCT Patent Application No. PCT/US2006/035844 to Krekeler et al., filedon Sep. 14, 2006, entitled “Secondary Process for Radioactive ChlorideDeweaponization and Storage.”

A. Properties of Starting Material

Grain size analysis was performed on the raw starting material (VolclaySPV 200, American Colloid) using standard mechanical sieves.Approximately 100 grams of raw material was analyzed using 8″ sievesusing fractions between 300 μm and 38 μm. The percentage that passed the38 μm sieve was included in the analysis. Sieve stacks were shakenmechanically for 15 minutes. Fractions captured in each sieve were thenweighed. Normalized percentages of each size fraction were calculatedbased on the total sum of mass retained in each sieve. Differencesbetween total mass analyzed and total mass retained varied from 3% to7%.

Grain size analysis indicates that for most analyses, a single normaldistribution of particles does not exist in the starting material. Thevariability in the size distribution of particles is attributed tovariation in processing, or natural variability of source material inthe mine at the manufacturer's source. The modes at 180 μm, 106 μm, 75μm, and <38 μm are common. Analyses of grain size distribution atvarious modes are shown in TABLE 2. These analyses have single andmultiple modes.

TABLE 2 Grain Size Distribution by Normalized Percentages for Analyses1–10 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 300 μm 0.11 0.14 0.06 0.22 1.62 0.67 0.37 0.070.070 0.051 250 μm 0.22 0.36 0.40 0.78 0.30 0.21 0.52 0.43 0.087 0.174212 μm 11.84 7.53 0.43 14.79 0.36 0.32 1.73 7.66 0.210 0.245 180 μm 7.6830.14 0.58 26.61 0.73 0.53 3.76 23.54 0.576 0.562 150 μm 3.30 19.44 0.8916.88 1.35 1.21 9.61 17.20 0.960 1.094 125 μm 13.18 13.01 1.62 13.162.21 2.23 16.79 16.30 2.113 1.809 106 μm 14.10 0.78 2.50 8.09 3.24 3.0224.71 14.00 2.235 3.741  90 μm 0.75 5.31 8.01 1.26 5.58 6.95 0.66 0.4720.080 13.493  75 μm 2.76 11.77 12.60 2.84 29.92 30.70 4.51 0.09 13.23613.544  63 μm 5.13 1.71 26.66 3.89 21.48 23.87 7.44 2.03 4.226 6.930  53μm 14.22 6.88 24.95 7.60 13.39 18.74 14.53 9.21 11.053 15.476  43 μm11.67 2.17 14.94 3.54 10.29 6.60 8.23 3.50 12.135 12.144  38 μm 9.880.77 5.96 0.30 6.80 3.07 7.13 5.51 15.872 14.535 <38 μm 5.16 0.00 0.400.02 2.72 1.90 0.00 0.00 17.147 16.202 Sum 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

The raw material used to make the aqueous clay suspension 115 (e.g.,uniform aqueous Na-montmorillonite suspension) is a processed bentonite.The coarse fraction of the raw starting material used to make thistechnology was investigated using back scatter scanning electronmicroscopy as a means to characterize the raw material. Themineralogical characteristics of the coarse fraction provide someinsight into the nature of the raw material. However, the coarsefraction has a very minimal role in contributing to the properties ofthe aqueous clay suspension 115. Because the raw material is processed,some small fragments of the coarse fraction minerals may enter thetechnology product. Therefore, the data on the coarse fraction is usefulfor forensic purposes once the aqueous clay suspension 115 is deployed.The coarse mineral data also serves as a characteristic of the originalmaterial.

Coarse fraction mineral grains varied between very angular to roundedshapes. However, most grains are very angular to angular. Mineralscommonly observed are plagioclase, biotite, zircon, quartz, K-feldspar,calcite, and iron oxides. PbS (galena) was also observed. There are twogeneral groups of minerals based on geologic processes. Plagioclase,biotite, zircon, and quartz are volcanic in origin while calcite,K-feldspar, iron oxides, and galena are authigenic in origin. K-feldspar(sanidine) can also be volcanic in origin. Aggregates of calcite andK-feldspar were observed, and galena was observed with these twominerals. Such authigenic mineral associations have been observed inOrdovician bentonites. Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) spectraanalyses indicate that the biotite is intermediate in composition withrespect to Fe and Mg concentrations. There is also Ti and Cl in thebiotite. EDS analyses indicate that the plagioclase is commonlylabradoritic to albitic in composition. Zircon crystals are end membercomposition and no Hf was detected. The detection limit is approximately1%.

B. Grain Size Analysis of the Aqueous Clay Suspension

For transmission electron microscopy investigation, grain mounts wereprepared of the Na-montmorillonite using alcohol as a dispersing medium.Analyses were prepared on 300 mesh hole carbon Cu grids. Analyses wereinvestigated using a 300 kV JEM 3010 transmission electron microscope(TEM) and a 200 kV 2010 scanning transmission electron microscope (SEM).

TEM investigations indicate that the montmorillonite phase used in theprocess appears dominantly composed of montmorillonite particles (˜>95%)and with a lesser amount of silica particles. The morphology of themontmorillonite particles are generally described based on theclassification outlined in Güven. See Güven, N. 19 Smectites 495-559(1988). The montmorillonite from the suspension and process may comprisecommonly of foliated lamellar aggregates. Such aggregates may composeabout 40 to 75% of the montmorillonite particles. Subhedral plateletsand compact subhedral lamellar aggregates may occur as well. Both maymake up about 10 to 40% of the montmorillonite particles. Subhedrallamellar aggregates may also occur. These may make up about 5 to 10% ofthe montmorillonite particles.

Foliated lamellar aggregates may vary in diameter from ˜0.2 to >5.0 μm.Subhedral lamellar aggregates may vary in diameter from ˜0.1 to ˜3.5 μm.Subhedral platelets may vary in diameter from ˜0.5 to >5.0 μm.

SAED patterns taken along 00l on discrete particles show concentricrings. Discrete diffraction spots tend to occur, owing to localizedregular stacking but are typically not abundant or well ordered. Thesepatterns appear consistent with turbostratic stacking of the 2:1 layersin commonly observed montmorillonite. Diffraction patterns may rangefrom nearly homogenous rings to rings with about 40% spots.

EDS spectra were collected using the 300 kV JEM 3010 TEM. EDS spectrawere collected using spot size 2-3. Spectra with Si peaks greater than100 counts were deemed significant. Variation in intensity was relatedto apparent thickness. The higher contrast particles appeared to producemore intense spectra. Analyses were performed on the center ofparticles.

The elements observed include Si, Al, Fe, Ca, K, Na and Mg. Systematicdrift in EDS analyses occurred. SiO₂ concentrations tend to be elevatedand Na₂O concentrations may be lower than actual concentrations, owingto diffusion in either the solid state or release of hydrated interlayersodium cations. EDS chemical composition data (weight percent of oxidesfor each experimental run) are provided in TABLE 3. The minimum,maximum, median, variance and standard deviation of the elements arepresented in TABLE 4. FIGS. 6-12 illustrate some TEM and associated SAEDimages of montmorillonite particles. FIGS. 13-16 illustrate some TEMimages of montmorillonite particles. FIGS. 17-19 illustrate plotconcentrations of oxides from these tables.

TABLE 3 Chemical compositions of individual unreacted montmorilloniteparticles with descriptive statistics Analy- sis SiO₂ Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgOCaO Na₂O K₂O total 1 62.55 25.61 3.29 5.10 0.80 2.59 0.06 100.00 2 58.4226.91 2.22 7.65 1.01 3.74 0.05 100.00 3 63.90 23.74 3.22 4.40 1.26 3.400.08 100.00 4 57.99 27.63 3.15 6.84 0.70 3.60 0.08 100.00 5 58.21 29.302.66 5.88 0.69 3.24 0.03 100.00 6 84.85 10.02 1.16 2.32 0.50 1.14 0.00100.00 7 58.79 27.80 3.42 6.19 0.67 3.10 0.03 100.00 8 56.50 28.35 2.677.65 0.74 4.08 0.01 100.00 9 54.40 29.75 2.35 8.38 0.87 4.14 0.11 100.0010 63.34 25.34 3.65 4.05 1.33 2.21 0.07 100.00 11 62.21 25.14 3.99 4.830.78 2.97 0.08 100.00 12 57.93 27.93 3.30 6.84 0.73 3.15 0.12 100.00 1359.24 27.48 3.20 6.18 0.62 3.24 0.05 100.00 14 62.30 24.91 3.86 5.110.78 2.84 0.20 100.00 15 62.34 26.33 3.15 4.73 0.97 2.44 0.05 100.00 1662.66 26.38 3.13 4.15 0.74 2.89 0.04 100.00 17 63.67 24.82 3.19 4.300.99 2.90 0.13 100.00 18 64.05 22.83 2.00 6.96 0.70 3.39 0.07 100.00 1956.13 28.67 2.79 7.74 0.70 3.97 0.00 100.00 20 56.80 27.41 2.63 8.330.77 3.96 0.11 100.00 21 58.32 28.82 2.32 6.03 0.66 3.81 0.06 100.00 2258.27 28.01 2.95 6.64 0.74 3.32 0.07 100.00 23 57.99 28.54 2.80 6.720.69 3.20 0.06 100.00 24 55.88 28.58 2.30 8.27 0.76 4.19 0.04 100.00 2556.41 27.50 2.49 8.37 0.84 4.35 0.05 100.00 26 57.89 28.52 2.75 6.610.73 3.50 0.02 100.00 27 62.79 25.16 3.16 5.03 1.04 2.75 0.08 100.00 2855.98 28.03 2.49 7.87 0.99 4.56 0.08 100.00 29 62.74 26.61 2.65 3.981.09 2.88 0.05 100.00 30 56.26 28.56 2.22 8.00 0.69 4.19 0.09 100.00 3157.95 27.37 2.37 7.90 0.62 3.74 0.05 100.00 32 62.87 24.27 3.43 4.810.87 3.56 0.18 100.00 33 57.39 27.50 2.55 7.57 0.74 4.25 0.00 100.00 3458.68 28.18 2.89 6.41 0.66 3.12 0.07 100.00 35 60.60 26.25 3.07 5.580.73 3.67 0.09 100.00 36 56.99 27.82 3.17 7.30 0.91 3.74 0.06 100.00 3757.78 27.67 3.00 6.92 0.94 3.55 0.14 100.00 38 56.60 27.52 3.60 7.270.97 3.92 0.12 100.00 39 80.96 12.74 1.83 2.03 0.73 1.61 0.12 100.00 4062.79 24.51 3.23 5.15 1.04 3.19 0.10 100.00 41 57.89 26.89 3.17 7.190.87 3.92 0.07 100.00 42 62.06 23.74 5.39 4.55 0.81 3.35 0.10 100.00 4365.29 22.55 4.08 4.25 1.18 2.48 0.18 100.00 44 56.69 27.20 3.07 8.080.59 4.28 0.09 100.00 45 57.82 27.18 2.65 7.75 0.80 3.67 0.13 100.00 4664.97 23.74 3.15 3.93 1.22 2.61 0.39 100.00 47 59.09 27.90 2.43 6.620.70 3.24 0.02 100.00 48 58.91 27.82 2.63 6.76 0.67 3.12 0.09 100.00 4963.47 23.81 5.18 3.65 1.05 2.71 0.12 100.00 50 54.83 28.35 3.58 7.950.90 4.32 0.08 100.00

TABLE 4 Summary of Weight % of Oxides in Montmorillonite SiO₂ Al₂O₃Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O Cs₂O Cl Minimum 55.40 15.87 1.32 1.29 0.00 0.400.00 9.09 0.42 Maximum 64.08 23.15 3.17 5.79 0.14 1.89 2.17 18.77 2.18Median 58.00 19.92 1.93 4.45 0.06 0.88 0.02 13.36 0.87 Variance 3.071.83 0.14 1.22 0.00 0.13 0.40 4.40 0.12 St. Dev. 1.751 1.3512 0.379 1.110.036 0.362 0.6352 2.097 0.352

FIG. 6 shows a representative TEM image (top image) of lamellaraggregate of montmorillonite with characteristic irregular terminationsof particles. This particle has a diameter of ˜4.5 μm. Folded regionscan be as long as ˜3 μm. The SAED pattern (bottom image) is a verydiffuse SAED pattern of (hk0) reflections showing a high degree ofstructural disorder. The few diffraction spots which do occur areheavily streaked and rings are weak. The pattern indicates turbostraticstacking.

FIG. 7 shows a representative TEM image (top image) of particleexhibiting some straight edges. This texture is intermediate betweenplaty morphologies and lamellar aggregates commonly observed. The SAEDpattern (bottom image) is a very diffuse SAED pattern showing a highdegree of structural disorder. The few diffraction spots which do occurare heavily streaked are of the (hk0) reflections. The well developedrings are indicative of turbostratic stacking.

FIG. 8 shows a representative TEM image (top image) of a subhedral platyparticle of montmorillonite showing some near straight edgeterminations. The particle is ˜450 nm in diameter. An aggregate ofsilica particles is adjacent on the right of the particle. Smaller platymontmorillonite particle can be observed in the image will diametersbetween ˜50 nm and ˜120 nm. The SAED pattern (bottom image) taken along(hk0) for the subhedral particle in the lower center of the image aboveshowing diffraction rings indicative of a high degree of rotationalturbostratic stacking disorder with some discrete spots.

FIG. 9 shows a representative TEM image (top image) of lamellaraggregate of montmorillonite used in fluid. Central portion of imageshows an example of an anhedral lamellar aggregate with irregularmorphology. The diameter of the particle shown is ˜1.8 μm. The particleis surrounded by smaller discrete particles with a more platymorphology. The SAED pattern (bottom image) taken along (hk0) for thelamellar aggregate particle in the image above showing diffraction ringsindicative of a high degree of rotational turbostratic stacking disorderwith minor discrete spots.

FIG. 10 shows a representative TEM image (top image) of lamellaraggregate of montmorillonite used in fluid. Central portion of imageshows an example of an anhedral lamellar aggregate with irregularmorphology. The particle is surrounded by smaller discrete particles.The SAED pattern (bottom image) taken along (hk0) for the large particlein the image above showing diffraction rings indicative of a high degreeof rotational turbostratic stacking disorder with minor discrete spots.

FIG. 11 shows a representative TEM image (top image) of lamellaraggregate of montmorillonite used in fluid. Central portion of imageshows an example of a aggregate with a complex morphology. Near straightedge terminations on one side of the particle are present with anhedraledge terminations occurring on the opposite side of the particle. Thelarger particle in the center is surrounded by smaller subhedral toanhedral particles that are ˜0.1 μm to ˜0.5 μm in diameter. Particlemorphologies such as these are common in the montmorillonite used in thefluid. The SAED pattern (bottom image) taken along (hk0) for the largeparticle in the image above showing some discrete spots but still alarge degree of rotational turbostratic stacking disorder.

FIG. 12 shows a representative TEM image (top image) of lamellaraggregate of montmorillonite used in fluid. Upper portion of image showsan example of a pseudo rhombohedral morphology which is sometimesobserved. Near straight edge terminations shown elsewhere in this imageare also common. Subhedral lamellar aggregates are common in themontmorillonite used in the fluid. The SAED pattern (bottom image) takenalong (hk0) for the image above showing some discrete spots but still alarge degree of rotational turbostratic stacking disorder.

FIG. 13 shows a representative TEM image from grain mount showingmorphology of montmorillonite particles. Particles are commonly ˜0.3 μmto ˜3.0 μm in diameter and are lamellar aggregates to pseudo platy inmorphology. Darker particles tend to be lamellar aggregates while lightparticles dominantly are pseudo-platy to platy in morphology. Silicaparticles are of medium contrast and are rounded or rounded aggregates.

FIG. 14 shows a representative TEM image from grain mount showingmorphology of montmorillonite particles. Particles are commonly ˜0.80 μmto ˜3.0 μm in diameter and are lamellar aggregates to pseudo platy inmorphology. Silica particles are of medium contrast and are rounded orrounded aggregates.

FIG. 15 shows a representative TEM image from grain mount showingmorphology of montmorillonite particles. Particles are commonly ˜0.25 μmto ˜3.0 μm in diameter and are lamellar aggregates to pseudo platy inmorphology. Silica particles are of medium contrast and are rounded orrounded aggregates.

FIG. 16 shows a representative TEM image from grain mount showingmorphology of montmorillonite particles. Four larger particles withdarker contrast which are ˜0.5 μm to ˜1.5 μm in diameter are shown,which are lamellar aggregates. Smaller montmorillonite particles ˜0.1 μmto ˜0.5 μm in diameter occur throughout the image. Silica particles areof medium contrast and are rounded or rounded aggregates.

FIG. 17 shows an X-Y plot of the chemical compositional space (Al₂O₃ andSiO₂ in wt %) of montmorillonite used. Most of the particles have acomposition with an SiO₂ content between ˜50 and ˜65 wt %. The Al₂O₃content commonly falls between ˜20 and ˜32 wt %. The linear relationshipshows that there is systematic variation between these two components.

FIG. 18 shows an X-Y plot of the chemical compositional space(Al₂O₃—Fe₂O₃ in wt %) of montmorillonite used. Fe₂O₃ content in themontmorillonite is commonly between ˜1 and ˜5.5 wt %. This rangeindicates that the montmorillonite used varies from near idealcompositions of montmorillonite to intermediate compositions betweenmontmorillonite and nontronite. Al₂O₃ content commonly falls between ˜20and ˜32 wt % but may be as low as ˜10% in some particles. Thiscompositional field in part defines 2:1 layer compositionalcharacteristics of the technology.

FIG. 19 shows an X-Y plot of the chemical compositional space (MgO—Fe₂O₃in wt %) of montmorillonite used. MgO content varies from ˜2.0 to ˜8.5wt %. Mg and Fe are interpreted to be octahedral cations and can occurin the octahedral sheet in the 2:1 layer. This compositional field inpart defines 2:1 layer characteristics of the technology. Although notlikely, Fe³⁺ may substitute in the tetrahedral layer as well and thismay explain some of the variation observed.

C. Properties and Behavior of Reacted Aqueous Slurry

1. Example—Exchange with CsCl

In one experiment, ˜100 ml of the aqueous clay suspension comprising ofa montmorillonite-based fluid was mixed with ˜800 ml of 0.25 M solutionof CsCl to sequester ¹³³Cs⁺ aqueous cations. Initially, when a smallamount of montmorillonite-based fluid was introduced to the CsClsolution, immediate flocculation occurred and continued to occur. Phaseseparation began within ˜30-˜45 seconds as floccules began settling tothe bottom. After a few minutes a large portion of the flocculesseparated from the solution.

In other experiments, repeated feasibility tests show that a small pileof CsCl that is ˜1 inch in diameter can be contained by ˜20 to ˜30 pumpsof aqueous clay suspension. The spraying of the suspension on the CsClpowder does not agitate and disperse the powder. This effect is due tothe rheological properties of the suspension. The suspension selfaggregates and seals the pile. The mixture can then be vacuumed orremoved. Upon exchange with Cs⁺, visible changes in the physicalproperties occur. After exchange, the color of the aqueous claysuspension turns to Munsell values of 5Y 7/2, 5Y 7/3, 5Y 6/2, 5Y 6/3 orintermediate colors between those values. A dramatic change in therheological properties occurs where the gel-like consistency of theNa-montmorillonite completely disappears and becomes a waxy paste in theCs-montmorillonite form.

The color of the aqueous clay suspension as compared to a Munsell colorchart varies slightly from 2.5Y 6/3 to 2.5Y 6/2. The color is generallyuniform within analyses and is not streaked.

Each of the thirty analyses of Cs-montmorillonite was analyzed forweight percentage of oxides using EDS. For transmission electronmicroscopy investigation, grain mounts were prepared of the Cs-exchangedmontmorillonite using alcohol as a dispersing medium. Analyses wereprepared on 300 mesh hole carbon Cu grids. Analyses were produced usinga 300 kV JEM 3010 TEM. The weight percentages of oxides of eachexperimental run and the summary are respectively shown in TABLES 5-6.FIG. 20 illustrates some TEM and associated SAED images of Cs-reactedmontmorillonite particles.

TABLE 5 Chemical compositions of Cs-reacted montmorillonite particleswith descriptive statistics. Analysis SiO₂ Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂OCs₂O Cl Total 1 56.05 19.30 3.17 1.29 0.00 0.65 0.00 18.77 0.77 100.00 257.29 20.03 1.92 3.26 0.00 1.14 0.02 15.53 0.81 100.00 3 58.52 20.052.05 4.84 0.09 0.75 0.08 12.63 0.99 100.00 4 60.33 19.73 2.50 5.31 0.050.40 0.04 10.93 0.71 100.00 5 59.08 20.11 2.36 4.66 0.06 0.60 0.00 12.400.73 100.00 6 56.05 21.52 2.31 5.79 0.02 1.89 0.00 11.91 0.51 100.00 760.03 19.88 1.67 5.15 0.10 1.15 2.11 9.09 0.82 100.00 8 58.64 19.95 2.154.49 0.05 0.81 0.00 12.90 1.01 100.00 9 58.90 19.76 1.94 4.13 0.11 0.920.52 12.80 0.92 100.00 10 60.60 19.35 1.54 4.96 0.03 1.24 2.17 9.27 0.84100.00 11 60.04 19.24 1.60 4.44 0.05 1.39 2.07 10.40 0.77 100.00 1264.08 15.87 1.89 5.30 0.07 0.57 0.18 11.30 0.74 100.00 13 56.06 21.741.96 5.41 0.00 1.53 0.02 12.23 1.05 100.00 14 58.00 19.78 2.23 4.46 0.031.13 0.00 13.29 1.08 100.00 15 59.29 18.83 1.97 4.21 0.08 0.70 0.0213.59 1.31 100.00 16 58.45 19.11 2.00 2.09 0.04 0.73 0.02 16.19 1.37100.00 17 56.87 21.04 1.91 5.48 0.11 1.38 0.08 11.95 1.18 100.00 1855.40 21.16 1.73 4.98 0.07 1.88 0.02 13.62 1.14 100.00 19 58.87 19.031.71 4.62 0.07 1.14 0.01 13.43 1.12 100.00 20 58.38 18.98 2.16 3.23 0.140.71 0.26 14.84 1.30 100.00 21 57.95 19.29 1.96 2.97 0.08 1.15 0.0514.37 2.18 100.00 22 57.99 19.76 1.92 2.12 0.04 0.83 0.07 15.67 1.60100.00 23 57.65 20.71 1.88 3.38 0.02 0.80 0.01 14.91 0.64 100.00 2457.39 21.72 1.45 4.79 0.09 0.86 0.08 12.72 0.90 100.00 25 57.27 20.951.58 3.30 0.03 0.91 0.01 15.13 0.82 100.00 26 58.60 19.50 2.30 3.86 0.090.89 0.01 14.33 0.42 100.00 27 57.53 20.39 1.79 3.15 0.05 0.85 0.0015.48 0.76 100.00 28 56.74 23.15 2.63 3.70 0.12 0.58 0.35 11.60 1.13100.00 29 56.92 21.53 1.72 3.45 0.06 0.86 0.51 14.32 0.63 100.00 3056.34 22.27 1.32 4.53 0.06 0.89 0.00 13.90 0.69 100.00

TABLE 6 Summary of Weight % of Oxides in Montmorillonite SiO₂ Al₂O₃Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O Cs₂O Cl Minimum 55.40 15.87 1.32 1.29 0.00 0.400.00 9.09 0.42 Maximum 64.08 23.15 3.17 5.79 0.14 1.89 2.17 18.77 2.18Median 58.00 19.92 1.93 4.45 0.06 0.88 0.02 13.36 0.87 Variance 3.071.83 0.14 1.22 0.00 0.13 0.40 4.40 0.12 St. Dev. 1.751 1.3512 0.379 1.110.036 0.362 0.6352 2.097 0.352

FIG. 20 shows representative TEM images (left) and respective SAEDpatterns (right) of Cs-reacted montmorillonite particles. Magnificationis a 6,000× for all images. Particles shown are largely lamellaraggregates. SAED pattern show variation with some patterns being overallsimilar to un-reacted montmorillonite have turbostratic rings being welldeveloped and lacking a large number of discrete diffraction spots suchas SAED patterns for A and C. Other particles have very discretediffraction spots after reaction with Cs⁺ such as those in B and D. TheDiscrete spots are interpreted as a result of Cs⁺ cations exchanginginto specific discrete crystallographic sites in the hexagonal rings ofbetween the tetrahedral sheets in the montmorillonite structure.

2. Example—Exchange with SrCl₂.6H₂O

Similar to the CsCl experiments above, the aqueous clay suspension maybe applied to SrCl₂.6H₂O. In one experiment, the aqueous clay suspensioncomprising of montmorillonite-based fluid was introduced to ˜0.25 Msolution of SrCl₂.H₂O. After a few minutes, the introducedmontmorillonite-based fluid showed flocculation. A close inspectionreveals that floccules are well-formed and discrete with diameters of˜1-˜2 mm. Time lapse here is ˜15 mins.

For transmission electron microscopy investigation, grain mounts wereprepared of the Sr-exchanged montmorillonite using alcohol as adispersing medium. Analyses were prepared on 300 mesh hole carbon Cugrids. Analyses were investigated using a 300 kV JEM 3010 TEM and a 200kV 2010 SEM. The weight percentages of oxides of each experimental runand the summary are respectively shown in TABLES 7-8. FIG. 21illustrates some TEM and associated SAED images of Sr-reactedmontmorillonite particles.

TABLE 7 Chemical compositions of Cs-reacted montmorillonite particleswith descriptive statistics. Analysis SiO₂ Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO SrO Na₂OK₂O Total 1 57.40 23.19 3.62 4.85 0.55 9.26 1.14 0.00 100.00 2 56.8024.46 3.81 5.13 0.39 7.44 1.97 0.00 100.00 3 58.70 22.29 4.17 5.78 0.367.22 1.47 0.01 100.00 4 60.72 23.13 3.11 5.61 0.37 5.58 1.48 0.01 100.005 58.28 23.75 4.10 4.73 0.43 7.70 1.02 0.00 100.00 6 58.27 23.85 3.274.54 0.46 8.68 0.93 0.00 100.00 7 61.86 22.06 2.75 5.46 0.37 6.34 1.100.07 100.00 8 60.49 22.59 2.76 5.74 0.38 6.26 1.77 0.01 100.00 9 59.3923.25 2.57 5.91 0.44 6.74 1.71 0.00 100.00 10 61.21 23.12 2.90 4.82 0.386.28 1.30 0.00 100.00 11 59.05 23.11 3.47 5.51 0.37 6.88 1.62 0.00100.00

TABLE 8 Summary of Weight % of Oxides in Montmorillonite SiO₂ Al₂O₃Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO SrO Na₂O K₂O Mini- 56.80 22.06 2.57 4.54 0.36 5.58 0.930.00 mum Maxi- 61.86 24.46 4.17 5.91 0.55 9.26 1.97 0.07 mum Median59.05 23.13 3.27 5.46 0.38 6.88 1.47 0.00 Vari- 2.60 0.48 0.31 0.23 0.001.21 0.11 0.00 ance St. Dev. 1.612 0.694 0.558 0.482 0.057 1.099 0.3390.021

FIG. 21 shows representative TEM images (left) and respective SAEDpatterns (right) of Sr-reacted montmorillonite particles. Magnificationis 6,000× for all images. Particles shown are largely lamellaraggregates. SAED pattern show variation with some patterns being overallsimilar to un-reacted montmorillonite have turbostratic rings being welldeveloped and lacking a large number of discrete diffraction spots. TheSAED pattern for B shows some discrete poorly formed spots in the rings.

D. Sorption Based Media

1. Pre-Contact with Aqueous Slurry

The sorption based media may comprise of any clay material from thesmectite class. As an exemplified embodiment, the sorption based mediacomprises palygorskite-rich media. The palygorskite-rich media can begranulated in form from particle sizes of ˜10 micrometers to ˜1 cm.Particles are commonly angular but rarely rounded particles do occur.

In addition, as another embodiment, the palygorskite (as well as otherminerals that may be used as the sorption based media) may be pretreatedwith a plurality of cations, such as Na⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, etc. Pretreatingthe sorption based media with various cations can help facilitate theexchange of cations with radionuclides.

Particle size distribution tends to allow the media to be modified tochange the permeability. For example, RVM 420 formulation (a granulatedproduct obtainable from Oil Dri Corporation of America of Chicago, Ill.)in unmodified form has a range of permeability coefficients that canvary from ˜2.55 to ˜4.29 cm/s. By modifying grain size, the permeabilitycoefficient can be modified. For example, sieved material <1.18 mm inaverage diameter has permeability coefficients that can vary from ˜1.14to ˜3.46 cm/s. Permeability tests and results can be seen in TABLES9-16.

TABLE 9 Permeability Tests of Unmodified Data T₀ T₁ Vol₀ Vol₁ Height₀Height₁ Log K Meas (sec) (sec) (mL) (mL) (cm) (cm) Q L h0–h1 h0/h1 h0/h1cm/s 1 0 47.33 20.0 60.9 55.0 31.5 40.9 7.9 23.5 1.75 0.24 2.82 2 051.05 19.0 59.4 55.5 32.0 40.4 7.9 23.5 1.73 0.24 2.55 3 0 50.80 17.460.1 56.5 31.5 42.7 7.9 25.0 1.79 0.25 3.06 4 0 50.69 18.3 60.2 56.131.4 41.9 7.9 24.7 1.79 0.25 2.95 5 0 46.63 19.3 60.0 55.4 31.5 40.7 7.923.9 1.76 0.25 2.94 6 0 46.30 19.5 60.4 55.2 31.3 40.9 7.9 23.9 1.760.25 2.99 7 0 46.35 19.1 60.1 55.4 31.5 41.0 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 2.98 8 046.83 20.0 60.1 55.0 31.5 40.1 7.9 23.5 1.75 0.24 2.80 9 0 48.92 19.260.4 55.4 31.3 41.2 7.9 24.1 1.77 0.25 2.89 10 0 48.61 18.8 60.5 55.631.3 41.7 7.9 24.3 1.78 0.25 2.99 11 0 49.44 18.8 60.4 55.6 31.3 41.67.9 24.3 1.78 0.25 2.93 12 0 49.14 19.8 60.6 55.1 31.1 40.8 7.9 24.01.77 0.25 2.84 13 0 47.97 18.5 60.2 55.9 31.4 41.7 7.9 24.5 1.78 0.253.06 14 0 47.15 19.5 60.9 55.1 31.5 41.4 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 2.89 15 046.94 19.7 59.9 55.3 31.6 40.2 7.9 23.7 1.75 0.24 2.83 16 0 47.91 19.160.2 55.4 31.4 41.1 7.9 24.0 1.76 0.25 2.91 17 0 48.84 18.2 60.1 56.131.5 41.9 7.9 24.6 1.78 0.25 3.04 18 0 47.33 20.0 60.3 55.0 31.4 40.37.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 2.81 19 0 47.59 19.6 61.0 55.3 30.9 41.4 7.9 24.41.79 0.25 3.08 20 0 48.47 19.7 60.4 55.3 31.3 40.7 7.9 24.0 1.77 0.252.86 21 0 47.79 20.1 60.3 54.9 31.4 40.2 7.9 23.5 1.75 0.24 2.75 22 047.71 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 2.87 23 0 47.29 19.759.9 55.3 31.6 40.2 7.9 23.7 1.75 0.24 2.81 24 0 48.44 20.2 60.2 54.931.4 40.0 7.9 23.5 1.75 0.24 2.70 25 0 49.59 19.8 60.4 55.1 31.3 40.67.9 23.8 1.76 0.25 2.75 26 0 48.52 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 40.6 7.9 23.91.76 0.25 2.82 27 0 49.58 19.8 60.6 55.1 31.1 40.8 7.9 24.0 1.77 0.252.82 28 0 48.94 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 2.80 29 049.36 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 2.77 30 0 52.40 19.460.4 55.4 31.3 41.0 7.9 24.1 1.77 0.25 2.68 31 0 52.01 19.3 60.3 55.431.4 41.0 7.9 24.0 1.76 0.25 2.68 32 0 51.74 19.8 60.2 55.1 31.4 40.47.9 23.7 1.75 0.24 2.59 33 0 51.88 19.6 60.4 55.3 31.3 40.8 7.9 24.01.77 0.25 2.68 34 0 47.82 19.5 60.2 55.4 31.4 40.7 7.9 24.0 1.76 0.252.89 35 0 48.26 20.0 60.6 55.0 31.1 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.77 0.25 2.86 36 049.63 19.4 60.1 55.4 31.5 40.7 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 2.76 37 0 49.47 20.259.8 54.9 31.6 39.6 7.9 23.3 1.74 0.24 2.57 38 0 50.11 20.2 60.7 54.931.1 40.5 7.9 23.8 1.77 0.25 2.73 39 0 48.66 19.7 60.7 55.3 31.1 41.07.9 24.2 1.78 0.25 2.93 40 0 49.84 20.2 61.0 54.9 30.9 40.8 7.9 24.01.78 0.25 2.82 41 0 33.10 20.0 61.0 55.0 30.9 41.0 7.9 24.1 1.78 0.254.29 42 0 32.14 20.0 60.0 55.0 31.5 40.0 7.9 23.5 1.75 0.24 4.06 43 032.52 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 40.2 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 4.08 44 0 33.25 20.061.8 55.0 32.4 41.8 7.9 22.6 1.70 0.23 3.75 45 0 32.56 19.5 60.0 55.231.5 40.5 7.9 23.7 1.75 0.24 4.12 46 0 33.03 19.4 60.2 55.4 31.4 40.87.9 24.0 1.76 0.25 4.20 47 0 32.82 19.4 60.2 55.4 31.4 40.8 7.9 24.01.76 0.25 4.22 48 0 32.32 19.6 59.9 55.3 31.5 40.3 7.9 23.8 1.76 0.244.16 49 0 32.47 19.8 60.0 55.1 31.5 40.2 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 4.07 50 032.41 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 4.23 51 0 32.61 19.860.1 55.1 31.5 40.3 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 4.07 52 0 32.75 20.0 60.4 55.031.3 40.4 7.9 23.7 1.76 0.24 4.11 53 0 32.54 20.0 60.4 55.0 31.3 40.47.9 23.7 1.76 0.24 4.14 54 0 32.75 19.8 60.4 55.1 31.3 40.6 7.9 23.81.76 0.25 4.16 55 0 32.47 19.6 60.0 55.3 31.5 40.4 7.9 23.8 1.76 0.244.16 56 0 32.38 19.5 60.2 55.4 31.4 40.7 7.9 24.0 1.76 0.25 4.27 57 032.64 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 40.2 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 4.06 58 0 32.71 20.060.4 55.0 31.3 40.4 7.9 23.7 1.76 0.24 4.11 59 0 32.97 19.3 60.4 55.431.3 41.1 7.9 24.1 1.77 0.25 4.28 60 0 32.33 19.9 60.2 55.1 31.4 40.37.9 23.7 1.75 0.24 4.14 61 0 32.94 19.6 60.0 55.3 31.5 40.4 7.9 23.81.76 0.24 4.10 62 0 33.22 19.3 60.0 55.4 31.5 40.7 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.254.12 63 0 33.02 20.0 60.6 55.0 31.1 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.77 0.25 4.18 64 033.31 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 4.11 65 0 33.14 19.460.0 55.4 31.5 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 4.12 66 0 32.80 20.0 60.2 55.031.4 40.2 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 4.04 67 0 32.84 19.6 60.0 55.3 31.5 40.47.9 23.8 1.76 0.24 4.11 68 0 33.34 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 40.6 7.9 23.91.76 0.25 4.11 69 0 32.16 20.0 59.8 55.0 31.6 39.8 7.9 23.4 1.74 0.244.00 70 0 33.14 19.8 60.4 55.1 31.3 40.6 7.9 23.8 1.76 0.25 4.11 71 033.38 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 40.2 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 3.97 72 0 32.59 20.060.1 55.0 31.5 40.1 7.9 23.5 1.75 0.24 4.02 73 0 33.11 19.4 60.3 55.431.4 40.9 7.9 24.0 1.76 0.25 4.20 74 0 33.31 20.0 60.3 55.0 31.4 40.37.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 3.99 75 0 33.04 19.8 60.3 55.1 31.4 40.5 7.9 23.71.75 0.24 4.07 76 0 32.98 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 40.2 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.244.02 77 0 33.46 19.8 60.2 55.1 31.4 40.4 7.9 23.7 1.75 0.24 4.01 78 033.43 19.4 60.0 55.4 31.5 40.6 7.9 23.9 1.76 0.25 4.09 79 0 32.80 20.060.2 55.0 31.4 40.2 7.9 23.6 1.75 0.24 4.04 80 0 32.90 20.0 60.4 55.031.3 40.4 7.9 23.7 1.76 0.24 4.09

TABLE 9 shows the results of RVM 420 tests conducted onpalygorskite-rich media. The column height is 7.9 cm. The equation usedis:

K=QL/13.76t(h0−h1)×log 10(h0/h1)  (1).

M stands for the measurement number. T₀ stands for Time₀. T₁ stands forTime₁. Vol₀ stands for Volume₀. Vol₁ stands for Volume₁.

TABLE 10 Summary of Table 9 Results Average cm/s 3.47 Minimum cm/s 2.55Maximum cm/s 4.29 Variance 0.42 Standard Deviation 0.65

TABLE 10 shows the summary of results from TABLE 9.

Data for fine palygorskite granulated at <1.18 mm are listed in TABLE11. Here, the RVM 420 tests were conducted with a column height at 7.9cm. The equation used is:

K=QL/13.76t(h0−h1)×log 10(h0/h1)  (2).

M stands for the measurement number. T₀ stands for Time₀. T₁ stands forTime₁. Vol₀ stands for Volume₀. Vol₁ stands for Volume₁.

TABLE 11 Permeability Tests of Fine Data T₀ T₁ Vol₀ Vol₁ Height₀ Height₁Log K M (sec) (sec) (mL) (mL) (cm) (cm) Q L h0–h1 h0/h1 ho/h1 cm/s 1 015.60 2.8 31.3 67.4 50.9 28.5 7.9 16.5 1.324165 0.121942 2.11 2 0 17.5431.3 53.2 50.9 38.1 21.9 7.9 12.8 1.335958 0.125793 1.15 3 0 14.90 9.031.0 64.0 50.7 22.0 7.9 13.3 1.262327 0.101172 1.14 4 0 34.00 31.0 69.550.7 28.9 38.5 7.9 21.8 1.754325 0.24411 3.46 5 0 26.14 16.4 51.7 59.739.1 35.3 7.9 20.6 1.526854 0.183798 2.94 6 0 33.20 51.7 79.6 39.1 22.827.9 7.9 16.3 1.714912 0.234242 1.84 7 0 13.69 0.6 23.9 68.9 55.7 23.37.9 13.2 1.236984 0.092364 1.19 8 0 14.45 4.8 28.0 66.4 52.8 23.2 7.913.6 1.257576 0.099534 1.25 9 0 19.45 28.0 52.2 52.8 38.5 24.2 7.9 14.31.371429 0.137173 1.40 10 0 30.42 52.2 78.5 38.5 23.2 26.3 7.9 15.31.659483 0.219973 1.67 11 0 13.75 3.3 25.9 67.5 54.1 22.6 7.9 13.41.247689 0.096107 1.22 12 0 21.74 25.9 53.3 54.1 37.8 27.4 7.9 16.31.431217 0.155705 1.84 13 0 31.28 53.3 79.6 37.8 22.8 26.3 7.9 15.01.657895 0.219557 1.59 14 0 13.47 2.3 25.0 67.7 54.8 22.7 7.9 12.91.235401 0.091808 1.15 15 0 19.71 25.0 50.3 54.8 39.8 25.3 7.9 15.01.376884 0.138897 1.54 16 0 30.85 50.3 77.0 39.8 24.3 26.7 7.9 15.51.637860 0.214277 1.65 17 0 15.86 5.8 31.1 65.7 51.1 25.3 7.9 14.61.285714 0.109144 1.46 18 0 24.86 31.1 60.4 51.1 34.2 29.3 7.9 16.91.494152 0.174395 1.99 19 0 27.83 5.9 35.1 65.8 47.5 29.2 7.9 18.31.385263 0.141532 1.56 20 0 29.20 35.1 68.2 47.5 29.5 33.1 7.9 18.01.610169 0.206872 2.42

TABLE 12 Summary of Table 11 Results Average 1.73 Minimum 1.14 Maximum3.46 Variance 0.38 Standard 0.62 Deviation

Results from conducted RVM test #s 1-4 can be seen in TABLES 13-16. Thecolumn height for each of these 4 tests is 7.9 cm.

TABLE 13 RVM Test #1 Meas- Time₀ Time₁ Volume₀ Volume₁ Height₀ Height₁urement (sec) (sec) (mL) (mL) (cm) (cm) 1 0 47.33 20.0 60.9 55.0 31.5 20 51.05 19.0 59.4 55.5 32.0 3 0 50.80 17.4 60.1 56.5 31.5 4 0 50.69 18.360.2 56.1 31.4 5 0 46.63 19.3 60.0 55.4 31.5 6 0 46.30 19.5 60.4 55.231.3 7 0 46.35 19.1 60.1 55.4 31.5 8 0 46.83 20.0 60.1 55.0 31.5 9 048.92 19.2 60.4 55.4 31.3 10 0 48.61 18.8 60.5 55.6 31.3 11 0 49.44 18.860.4 55.6 31.3 12 0 49.14 19.8 60.6 55.1 31.1 13 0 47.97 18.5 60.2 55.931.4 14 0 47.15 19.5 60.9 55.1 31.5 15 0 46.94 19.7 59.9 55.3 31.6 16 047.91 19.1 60.2 55.4 31.4 17 0 48.84 18.2 60.1 56.1 31.5 18 0 47.33 20.060.3 55.0 31.4 19 0 47.59 19.6 61.0 55.3 30.9 20 0 48.47 19.7 60.4 55.331.3

TABLE 14 RVM Test #2 Meas- Time₀ Time₁ Volume₀ Volume₁ Height₀ Height₁urement (sec) (sec) (mL) (mL) (cm) (cm) 1 0 47.79 20.1 60.3 54.9 31.4 20 47.71 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 3 0 47.29 19.7 59.9 55.3 31.6 4 0 48.44 20.260.2 54.9 31.4 5 0 49.59 19.8 60.4 55.1 31.3 6 0 48.52 19.6 60.2 55.331.4 7 0 49.58 19.8 60.6 55.1 31.1 8 0 48.94 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 9 049.36 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 10 0 52.40 19.4 60.4 55.4 31.3 11 0 52.01 19.360.3 55.4 31.4 12 0 51.74 19.8 60.2 55.1 31.4 13 0 51.88 19.6 60.4 55.331.3 14 0 47.82 19.5 60.2 55.4 31.4 15 0 48.26 20.0 60.6 55.0 31.1 16 049.63 19.4 60.1 55.4 31.5 17 0 49.47 20.2 59.8 54.9 31.6 18 0 50.11 20.260.7 54.9 31.1 19 0 48.66 19.7 60.7 55.3 31.1 20 0 49.84 20.2 61.0 54.930.9

TABLE 15 RVM Test #3 Meas- Time₀ Time₁ Volume₀ Volume₁ Height₀ Height₁urement (sec) (sec) (mL) (mL) (cm) (cm) 1 0 33.10 20.0 61.0 55.0 30.9 20 32.14 20.0 60.0 55.0 31.5 3 0 32.52 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 4 0 33.25 20.061.8 55.0 32.4 5 0 32.56 19.5 60.0 55.2 31.5 6 0 33.03 19.4 60.2 55.431.4 7 0 32.82 19.4 60.2 55.4 31.4 8 0 32.32 19.6 59.9 55.3 31.5 9 032.47 19.8 60.0 55.1 31.5 10 0 32.41 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 11 0 32.61 19.860.1 55.1 31.5 12 0 32.75 20.0 60.4 55.0 31.3 13 0 32.54 20.0 60.4 55.031.3 14 0 32.75 19.8 60.4 55.1 31.3 15 0 32.47 19.6 60.0 55.3 31.5 16 032.38 19.5 60.2 55.4 31.4 17 0 32.64 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 18 0 32.71 20.060.4 55.0 31.3 19 0 32.97 19.3 60.4 55.4 31.3 20 0 32.33 19.9 60.2 55.131.4

TABLE 16 RVM Test #4 Meas- Time₀ Time₁ Volume₀ Volume₁ Height₀ Height₁urement (sec) (sec) (mL) (mL) (cm) (cm) 1 0 32.94 19.6 60.0 55.3 31.5 20 33.22 19.3 60.0 55.4 31.5 3 0 33.02 20.0 60.6 55.0 31.1 4 0 33.31 19.660.2 55.3 31.4 5 0 33.14 19.4 60.0 55.4 31.5 6 0 32.80 20.0 60.2 55.031.4 7 0 32.84 19.6 60.0 55.3 31.5 8 0 33.34 19.6 60.2 55.3 31.4 9 032.16 20.0 59.8 55.0 31.6 10 0 33.14 19.8 60.4 55.1 31.3 11 0 33.38 20.060.2 55.0 31.4 12 0 32.59 20.0 60.1 55.0 31.5 13 0 33.11 19.4 60.3 55.431.4 14 0 33.31 20.0 60.3 55.0 31.4 15 0 33.04 19.8 60.3 55.1 31.4 16 032.98 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 17 0 33.46 19.8 60.2 55.1 31.4 18 0 33.43 19.460.0 55.4 31.5 19 0 32.80 20.0 60.2 55.0 31.4 20 0 32.90 20.0 60.4 55.031.3

Referring to FIG. 22, powder X-ray diffraction patterns forpalygorskite-rich media used in the technology are shown for the rangeof 5-75° 2θ. The most intense peak of palygorskite is the (011) and islabeled in each pattern. There is some variation in the intensity, widthand overall shape of the (011) palygorskite peak and this is interpretedto be a function of variation in width and chemical composition. Quartzis a common impurity and the most intense peak is labeled as well.

EDS chemical composition data for unreacted palygorskite fibers (weightpercent of oxides for each experimental run) are provided in TABLE 17.The minimum, maximum, median, variance and standard deviation of theelements are presented in TABLE 18.

TABLE 17 EDS data for unreacted palygorskite fibers Anal- ysis SiO₂Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O Total 1 64.92 12.01 12.89 7.97 1.17 0.500.54 100.00 2 68.90 9.69 12.15 8.23 0.76 0.00 0.28 100.01 3 62.19 11.9512.48 9.25 2.79 0.78 0.55 99.99 4 62.80 17.37 8.13 7.48 2.07 0.58 1.58100.01 5 59.72 18.04 6.71 9.28 2.59 2.65 1.01 100.00 6 63.07 12.73 10.5211.42 1.07 0.63 0.56 100.00 7 65.57 11.33 12.12 9.85 0.45 0.00 0.68100.00 8 63.87 12.46 7.65 8.02 6.83 0.77 0.39 99.99 9 64.43 12.67 12.228.61 1.01 0.56 0.50 100.00 10 66.20 10.50 12.89 8.03 1.41 0.32 0.6499.99 11 63.71 12.81 6.62 9.62 5.46 1.06 0.71 99.99 12 69.26 8.71 11.528.95 0.32 0.69 0.57 100.02 13 64.85 9.44 10.71 13.26 0.67 0.82 0.26100.01 14 67.62 10.72 10.98 9.80 0.60 0.15 0.12 99.99 15 62.26 12.0810.50 13.01 1.02 0.88 0.26 100.01 16 62.40 11.55 11.17 10.92 2.03 0.641.30 100.01 17 63.93 12.83 9.84 11.51 0.57 0.67 0.66 100.01 18 76.198.55 5.05 9.97 0.20 0.02 0.01 99.99 19 75.90 8.20 5.30 9.61 0.31 0.560.11 99.99 20 74.35 10.22 4.50 9.37 0.67 0.50 0.40 100.01 21 68.85 8.8910.91 10.46 0.50 0.20 0.19 100.00 22 72.90 11.37 5.04 9.72 0.49 0.420.06 100.00 23 66.65 10.09 10.93 10.71 0.89 0.37 0.35 99.99 24 69.5510.49 9.39 9.06 0.91 0.32 0.28 100.00 25 78.53 6.93 3.82 9.35 0.56 0.730.07 99.99 26 80.06 6.91 3.60 8.36 0.55 0.31 0.21 100.00 27 77.40 8.584.39 8.89 0.48 0.00 0.26 100.00 28 74.75 9.64 3.89 10.47 0.35 0.71 0.19100.00 29 71.23 15.49 4.44 7.51 0.33 0.25 0.76 100.01 30 70.18 14.564.63 9.22 0.62 0.30 0.50 100.01 31 68.62 17.62 4.43 6.98 0.64 0.56 1.16100.01 32 67.70 11.36 11.49 8.22 0.87 0.04 0.32 100.00 33 65.70 19.546.26 4.45 3.05 0.33 0.67 100.00 34 68.05 17.39 6.16 5.47 1.17 0.68 1.08100.00 35 63.91 19.54 6.23 5.72 4.09 0.13 0.39 100.01 36 70.36 16.794.44 7.33 0.48 0.12 0.47 99.99 37 70.26 13.35 4.80 10.20 0.55 0.54 0.2999.99 38 71.32 12.28 4.09 11.27 0.29 0.24 0.52 100.01 39 73.57 11.033.37 10.32 0.68 0.66 0.37 100.00 40 72.31 14.92 3.97 7.77 0.76 0.00 0.28100.01 41 72.99 13.49 4.36 8.13 0.59 0.02 0.41 99.99 42 73.72 9.91 4.0511.47 0.48 0.00 0.37 100.00 43 68.22 11.26 10.51 8.90 0.92 0.10 0.09100.00 44 72.72 12.55 3.30 11.36 0.04 0.00 0.04 100.01 45 74.44 11.033.64 9.73 0.69 0.12 0.34 99.99 46 73.69 10.42 4.42 10.98 0.48 0.00 0.02100.01 47 72.01 13.28 5.09 7.71 0.87 0.53 0.51 100.00 48 72.06 14.114.28 8.48 0.46 0.09 0.51 99.99 49 73.26 11.81 3.93 9.87 0.29 0.79 0.05100.00 50 76.49 8.10 3.15 10.62 0.86 0.30 0.48 100.00 51 74.19 12.172.43 10.13 0.76 0.00 0.31 99.99 52 73.50 13.35 3.12 9.33 0.43 0.13 0.1399.99 53 68.42 13.98 4.72 10.34 0.76 0.82 0.97 100.01 54 64.39 22.104.33 6.79 0.90 0.81 0.66 99.98 55 71.24 13.67 4.53 9.46 0.78 0.00 0.33100.01 56 70.28 12.16 4.28 10.70 1.28 0.73 0.57 100.00 57 75.06 12.574.08 7.61 0.47 0.00 0.21 100.00 58 75.02 12.80 3.96 7.15 0.71 0.05 0.31100.00 59 71.57 15.54 4.39 6.79 0.94 0.32 0.44 99.99 60 75.02 9.38 4.295.81 3.68 1.41 0.42 100.01 61 68.17 18.36 4.92 6.27 1.03 0.47 0.77 99.9962 73.16 13.16 6.76 5.76 0.79 0.00 0.38 100.01 63 78.43 8.79 4.29 7.170.84 0.00 0.48 100.00 64 66.43 12.50 5.69 9.23 3.96 1.56 0.64 100.01 6574.19 12.15 4.25 8.10 0.51 0.46 0.33 99.99 66 70.12 13.80 3.23 11.730.36 0.45 0.32 100.01 67 71.51 13.76 3.26 10.59 0.48 0.20 0.19 99.99 6867.52 18.30 7.58 4.25 1.45 0.00 0.90 100.00 69 66.17 19.73 6.39 5.820.78 0.65 0.45 99.99 70 73.16 11.55 5.80 7.98 1.23 0.00 0.29 100.01 7174.80 11.70 4.21 8.50 0.78 0.00 0.00 99.99 72 74.07 11.43 4.84 8.08 1.070.40 0.12 100.01 73 75.06 10.32 5.20 7.98 1.14 0.25 0.05 100.00 74 67.9516.94 5.19 7.82 1.04 0.32 0.75 100.01 75 68.17 11.83 8.66 10.18 0.650.32 0.19 100.00 76 70.60 10.72 9.41 8.00 0.96 0.00 0.30 99.99 77 70.758.64 10.79 8.36 1.13 0.00 0.33 100.00 78 70.60 11.09 8.92 7.49 1.75 0.000.15 100.00 79 69.07 11.17 6.32 7.75 4.35 0.82 0.51 99.99 80 64.58 16.208.19 6.98 2.10 0.38 1.56 99.99

TABLE 18 Summary of EDS data for unreacted palygorskite fibers SiO₂Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O Average 70.09 12.58 6.51 8.81 1.16 0.400.44 Minimum 59.72 6.91 2.43 4.25 0.04 0.00 0.00 Maximum 80.06 22.1012.89 13.26 6.83 2.65 1.58 Variance 20.23712 10.02039 9.167704 3.3206471.438338 0.182031 0.107066 St. Dev. 4.498569 3.1655 3.027822 1.8222641.199307 0.426651 0.32721

The following figures show plotted chemical compositions of individual,unreacted palygorskite particles. FIG. 23 shows a moderate linearrelationship between Al₂O₃ and SiO₂. However, FIGS. 24, 25 and 26 showno linear trends. FIG. 24 plots Fe₂O₃ and Al₂O₃ in a broadly triangularin shape. FIG. 25 shows MgO and Fe₂O₃ in a weak relationship, as doesFIG. 26, which compares MgO and Al₂O₃.

Illustrating images of unreacted palygorskite as the sorption basedmedia, reference is made to FIGS. 27-30. FIG. 27 shows an SEM image ofpalygorskite rich clay used as an additional sorption media. The centerportion of the image consists of a siliceous diatom fragment. Diatomsand similar microfossils are very common in the palygorskite-rich clayand add a minor amount to the overall sorption capacity.

FIG. 28 shows an SEM image of palygorskite rich clay used as anadditional sorption media. This image shows a platy mesoscale texturecommonly observed in the palygorskite rich clay. Irregular shapes andclusters of fibers can be observed at the edge terminations of the platyparticles. Minor pits and local micro topography of the samples can beseen in this image and the occurrence and distribution of these featuresadds to the reactive sorptive media.

FIG. 29 shows an additional SEM image of palygorskite rich clay used asan additional sorption media. This image shows a platy mesoscale texturecommonly observed in the palygorskite rich clay. Platy regions of samplematerial vary in average diameter form ˜0.5 μm to ˜15 μm. Edgeterminations at this magnification appear to be irregular. Clusters offibers can be observed at the edge terminations of the platy particle inthe center. Minor pits can be observed in the low left of the image.Local microtopography of the sample material is clearly evident in thisimage. The occurrence and distribution of these features adds to thereactive sorptive media.

FIG. 30 shows an SEM image of the upper edge termination of the centralplaty particle in the above image. Clusters of fibers protrude form theparticle edge. The anastamosing or interlocking texture of palygorskitefibers is evident from a few examples in this image. Surface topographyof particle is irregular and varied from particle to particle. Broadstep like structures are observed in the fore ground and irregular“foil”-like textures are shown in the background.

Palygorskite is reported to have a solubility product constant of 22.43(Jones B. F. and Galán E., 19 Rev. in Mins. 631-674 (1988)). Thisconstant suggests that the mineral is functionally insoluble overperiods of years. For example, calcite and aragonite have solubilityproduct constants of approximately 8.2-8.3 (Langmuir D, AqueousEnvironmental Geochemistry, 1997) and are thus orders of magnitude moresoluble than palygorskite. The palygorskite media is generally robustunder water conditions as expected in radiological contamination.

Palygorskite materials in the technology are broadly similar to thosedescribed by Krekeler et al., 53 Clays and Clay Mins. 94-101 (2005),Krekeler et al., 52 Clays and Clay Mins. 263-274 (2004), Krekeler 52Clays and Clay Mins. 253-262 (2004) and Jones and Galán (1988).Palygorskite materials in the technology have somewhat less apatite,illite and oxide minerals.

2. Contact with Aqueous Slurry

Once a radioactive containment composition contacts a radioactivematerial to form an aqueous slurry, floccules may be present. Suchfloccules may be removed using the sorption based media as a filteringmechanism. By accumulating floccules, the sorption based media mayseparate the floccules from the liquid. Separation may occur as amechanical process.

After the sorption based media contacts the aqueous slurry, a weightratio of the sorption based media to aqueous slurry may range from 1:99to 99:1.

The following RVM 420 experimental results have been generated when thesorption based media is contacted with aqueous slurry.

TABLE 19 Experimental Permeability Test Results T₀ T₁ V₀ V₁ Hght₀ Hght₁Log M (sec) (sec) (mL) (mL) (cm) (cm) Q L h0–h1 h0/h1 h0/h1 K cm/s 1 01683 20.0 29.0 54.5 52.6 9.0 7.9 1.9 1.0361 0.015411 0.000089910 2 01636 28.5 29.0 52.6 52.1 0.5 7.9 0.5 1.0096 0.004148 0.000000364 3 0981.3 0.4 0.7 69.0 68.7 0.3 7.9 0.3 1.0044 0.001892 0.000000100 4 0 189237.0 39.2 47.6 46.8 2.2 7.9 0.8 1.0171 0.007361 0.000003931 5 0 588313.0 18.0 67.3 59.0 15.0 7.9 8.3 1.1407 0.057163 0.000069452

TABLE 19 shows RVM 420 experimental permeability test results. Theseresults generally show how the palygorskite media slows down andaccumulated floccules from a montmorillonite based aqueous slurry. Thecolumn height is 7.9 cm. The equation used is:

K=QL/13.76t(h0−h1)×log 10(h0/h1)  (1).

M stands for the measurement number. T₀ stands for Time₀. T₁ stands forTime₁. Vol₀ stands for Volume₀. Vol₁ stands for Volume₁. Height₀ standsfor Height₀. Hght₁ stands for Height₁.

TABLE 20 Summary of Experimental Permeability Test Results Average0.000032751 Minimum 0.000000100 Maximum 0.000089910 Variance 0.000000002Standard Deviation 0.000043473

TABLE 20 shows a summary of the results of the RVM 420 experimentalpermeability tests.

The exemplified palygorskite-rich media may be used to accumulatefloccules and additional cations in water or fluids with which theradionuclide containment composition having, for instancemontmorillonite, interacts.

In one example, hydraulic conductivity experiments using mixedSrCl₂.6H₂O and CsCl reacted montmorillonite waste formed visiblefloccules with sizes of ˜0.2-˜2 mm in average diameter. These sizesindicate that permeability tends to decrease orders of magnitude.Permeability coefficients may vary from ˜0.0000001 cm/s to ˜0.000089cm/s compared to the observed range of ˜1.14 to ˜4.29 cm/sec forunmodified palygorskite-rich media using water. This variation indicatesthat the floccules are most likely being captured by the palygorskitesorption based media. The reduction in permeability is most likely theresult of floccules clogging pore throats.

TABLES 21 shows EDS chemical composition data (weight percent of oxidesfor each experimental run) for Sr reacted palygorskite fibers. Theaverage, minimum, maximum, variance and standard deviation of theelements are presented in TABLE 22.

TABLE 21 EDS data for reacted Sr-palygorskite fibers Analysis SiO₂ Al₂O₃Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O SrO Cl Total 1 63.08 15.89 5.30 5.90 0.47 0.060.17 8.88 0.25 100.00 2 58.92 14.41 4.03 10.44 0.00 0.90 0.22 7.90 0.1897.00 3 62.90 16.23 4.73 7.45 0.00 0.62 0.27 7.56 0.24 100.00 4 66.3013.49 3.85 7.95 0.17 0.14 0.30 7.57 0.23 100.00 5 63.66 15.39 5.44 5.830.36 0.02 0.37 8.58 0.34 99.99 6 61.08 15.50 4.53 9.48 0.00 0.65 0.178.48 0.12 100.01 7 65.89 6.82 4.09 10.77 0.02 0.51 0.46 9.61 1.84 100.018 58.81 10.58 3.85 11.81 0.52 0.89 0.06 10.86 2.62 100.00 9 60.49 19.454.64 7.75 0.00 0.53 0.20 6.79 0.16 100.01 10 60.51 18.60 4.29 7.76 0.050.60 0.33 7.57 0.29 100.00 11 59.39 17.63 4.47 8.85 0.71 0.34 0.28 8.210.14 100.02 12 63.12 12.48 3.68 13.21 0.05 0.59 0.00 6.84 0.03 100.00 1361.85 17.32 4.20 8.63 0.16 0.48 0.16 7.06 0.15 100.01 14 61.57 17.434.16 8.54 0.08 0.79 0.24 6.98 0.22 100.01 15 61.52 16.94 4.89 7.67 0.000.56 0.43 7.83 0.17 100.01 16 64.50 7.03 3.09 10.58 0.00 0.41 0.55 11.442.38 99.98

TABLE 22 Summary of reacted Sr-exchanged palygorskite fibers EDS dataSiO₂ Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O SrO Cl Average 61.94 15.21 4.41 8.800.17 0.51 0.24 8.05 0.47 Minimum 58.81 6.82 3.68 5.83 0.00 0.02 0.006.79 0.03 Maximum 66.30 19.45 5.44 13.21 0.71 0.90 0.46 10.86 2.62Variance 5.129 10.87 0.2703 4.21 0.05 0.074 0 1.247 0.54 St. Dev 2.2653.297 0.5199 2.05 0.23 0.272 0.1 1.117 0.74

TABLES 23 shows EDS chemical composition data (weight percent of oxidesfor each experimental run) for Sr reacted palygorskite fibers with Srchloride mineralization. The average, minimum, maximum, variance andstandard deviation of the elements are presented in TABLE 24.

TABLE 23 EDS data for Sr-exchanged palygorskite fibers with Sr chloridemineralization Analysis SiO₂ Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O SrO Cl 1 46.387.46 3.62 7.92 0.12 0.46 0.2 27.34 6.51 2 41.72 6.84 2.95 5.62 0.39 0 034.85 7.64 3 38.9 7.72 2.28 5.67 0.04 0 0.2 38.04 7.14 4 46.08 3.38 1.999.13 0 0 0.2 32.22 7.02 5 60.44 8.23 3.31 8.59 0.21 0.58 0 15.72 2.92 637.34 5.96 2.57 6.1 0.06 0 0.1 41.49 6.35 7 44.13 5.4 3.63 7.09 0.35 0 031.05 8.32

TABLE 24 Summary of EDS data for Sr-exchanged palygorskite fibers withSr chloride mineralization SiO₂ Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O SrO ClAverage 44.77 6.255 2.7883 7.03 0.18 0.097 0.1 32.23 6.57 Minimum 37.343.38 1.99 5.62 0 0 0 15.72 2.92 Maximum 60.44 8.23 3.63 9.13 0.39 0.580.2 41.49 8.32 Variance 69.33 3.095 0.39 2.31 0.03 0.056 0 80.07 3.62St. Dev 8.326 1.759 0.6245 1.52 0.17 0.237 0.1 8.948 1.9

Illustrating Sr-exchange with the sorption based media, FIG. 31 shows aTEM image of a strontium chloride reacted sample showing interlockingpalygorskite fibers. Fiber edges are straight and show no indication ofdissolution. Widths are ˜15 nm to ˜40 nm.

TABLES 25 shows EDS chemical composition data (weight percent of oxidesfor each experimental run) for Cs reacted palygorskite fibers. Theaverage, minimum, maximum, variance and standard deviation of theelements are presented in TABLE 26.

TABLE 25 EDS data for Cs-exchanged palygorskite fibers Analysis SiO₂Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O Cs₂O Total 1 64.49 10.09 5.66 8.98 2.580.00 0.16 7.86 100.02 2 64.42 8.66 6.75 10.60 0.40 0.00 0.09 9.07 99.993 64.93 9.19 6.38 9.05 2.36 0.22 0.10 7.77 100.00 4 64.44 10.77 6.519.27 2.75 0.00 0.15 6.11 100.00 5 64.11 13.67 6.38 7.06 0.13 0.00 0.248.40 99.99 6 67.27 12.53 6.92 6.07 0.08 0.00 0.10 7.02 99.99 7 56.1117.52 6.46 6.99 0.95 2.58 1.05 8.34 100.00 8 59.08 16.09 7.36 6.92 0.900.24 1.20 8.20 99.99 9 60.67 13.89 8.98 7.39 0.18 0.02 1.90 6.97 100.0010 57.18 15.35 8.07 9.36 0.11 2.29 1.48 6.16 100.00 11 60.70 13.84 9.087.67 0.16 0.16 1.82 6.57 100.00 12 60.23 15.91 8.89 7.56 0.09 0.00 1.805.52 100.00 13 54.22 14.48 10.04 6.99 4.39 0.23 2.72 6.93 100.00 1454.82 16.34 10.71 7.31 0.25 0.28 3.30 7.00 100.01 15 64.69 15.50 4.755.61 0.16 0.42 0.27 8.59 99.99 16 66.85 13.11 4.68 5.46 0.00 0.50 0.329.07 99.99 17 64.25 15.33 5.32 5.12 0.14 0.00 0.35 9.49 100.00 18 66.3215.85 4.46 4.40 0.09 0.00 0.00 8.88 100.00 19 66.74 12.07 5.61 5.93 0.100.31 0.41 8.82 99.99 20 67.07 12.80 5.23 6.02 0.05 0.16 0.10 8.57 100.0021 66.04 13.49 5.29 5.42 1.99 0.01 0.17 7.59 100.00 22 67.22 14.50 4.455.41 0.88 0.05 0.18 7.30 99.99 23 66.32 16.09 4.32 6.84 0.20 0.42 0.025.78 99.99 24 65.64 15.66 5.00 5.10 0.11 0.17 0.41 7.89 99.98 25 66.0615.09 4.84 4.87 0.02 0.08 0.30 8.73 99.99 26 63.74 18.29 4.79 3.92 0.100.24 1.28 7.64 100.00 27 62.68 18.21 4.74 3.90 0.17 0.32 1.27 8.71100.00 28 61.24 19.24 4.63 4.75 0.07 0.00 0.92 9.16 100.01 29 63.6915.24 4.81 5.41 0.96 0.00 0.84 9.05 100.00 30 65.07 14.58 4.66 5.54 1.180.00 0.69 8.28 100.00 31 62.70 18.77 4.97 4.05 0.00 0.00 1.00 8.51100.00 32 62.62 19.68 4.80 4.46 0.00 0.43 1.66 6.35 100.00 33 66.3411.33 5.45 8.22 0.11 0.44 0.35 7.75 99.99 34 65.54 13.41 5.66 8.27 0.000.16 0.35 6.61 100.00 35 63.93 10.26 5.86 9.11 1.66 1.26 0.27 7.66100.01 36 63.43 11.86 6.03 8.52 1.47 0.29 0.41 7.99 100.00 37 63.5714.49 5.61 7.53 1.48 0.56 0.50 6.26 100.00 38 64.43 17.38 5.77 6.43 0.710.48 0.73 4.07 100.00 38 65.92 14.16 5.75 6.83 0.71 0.00 0.51 6.11 99.9940 63.64 13.53 6.81 9.29 0.81 0.31 0.18 5.44 100.01

TABLE 26 Summary of EDS data for Cs-exchanged palygorskite fibers SiO₂Al₂O₃ Fe₂O₃ MgO CaO Na₂O K₂O Cs₂O Average 63.41 14.72 6.05 6.53 0.670.33 0.77 7.51 Minimum 54.22 9.19 4.32 3.90 0.00 0.00 0.00 4.07 Maximum67.27 19.68 10.71 9.36 4.39 2.58 3.30 9.49 Variance 11.6749 6.06922.6977 2.6472 0.8956 0.3136 0.5948 1.5931 St. Dev. 3.41686 2.4636 1.64251.627 0.9463 0.56 0.7712 1.2622

FIG. 32 illustrates TEM images of Cs-exchange with the sorption basedmedia. A shows a TEM image showing palygorskite fibers that have beenreacted with CsCl. Fibers are ˜10 nm to ˜25 nm in width. B shows a TEMimage where palygorskite fibers have been reacted with CsCl. It may benoted that this images shows grain of quartz impurity. Fibers arecommonly ˜20-˜50 nm in width. C shows a TEM image with aggregates ofpalygorskite fibers having been reacted with CsCl. Terminations offibers are commonly straight. The larger fiber is approximately 100 nmin width. It appears that the fibers are not corroded and areessentially the same texture as unreacted fibers.

In addition to these data and figures, the mixture of the sorption basedmedia and radioactive containment composition can be seen in FIGS. 33and 34. Each of these figures identify the differences in fiber size forthe sorption based media and radioactive containment composition. As anexample, the sorption based media is palygorskite and the radioactivecontainment composition involves montmorillonite.

Referring to FIG. 33, A shows a TEM image from a grain mount withpalygorskite fibers having widths ranging from ˜10 nm to ˜60 nm.Particles are inter-grown and form aggregates similar to those describedin Krekeler et al. 2005. B shows a TEM image with a mixture ofmontmorillonite and palygorskite fibers. Montmorillonite occurs in thepalygorskite source materials. Palygorskite fibers are ˜8 nm to ˜25 nmin width. The montmorillonite particle is ˜25 nm thick and ˜150 nm inlength. C shows a TEM image with palygorskite fibers varying in widthfrom ˜9 nm to ˜30 nm. It appears that there are straight and irregularterminations of the fibers along [100]. D shows a TEM image withpalygorskite fibers that are ˜5 nm to ˜32 nm in width. A smallmontmorillonite particle is labeled and is ˜3 nm thick and ˜40 nm inlength.

Similarly, referring to FIG. 34, A shows a TEM image of a grain mountshowing palygorskite fibers with widths from ˜15 nm to ˜30 nm. B shows aTEM image showing a mixture of palygorskite fibers ranging from ˜20 nmto ˜30 nm in width. C shows a TEM image with palygorskite fibers varyingin width from ˜10 nm to ˜70 nm. It appears that there are straight andirregular terminations of the fibers along [100]. D shows a TEM imagewith palygorskite fibers that are ˜12 nm to ˜40 nm in width. A smallmontmorillonite particle is labeled and is ˜30 nm thick and ˜100+ nm inlength.

E. Relevance of pH Values

The pH values of solutions and suspensions are critical data forunderstanding the mechanisms of the chemistry of the solutions andsuspensions. The range of pH values observed in the reacted materialserves as a function of the degree of reaction that has taken place.Below are described pH data from bulk experiments.

For example, NO₃ ⁻ from a 0.05 N AgNO₃ solution is not precipitated inany phase and is ambient in the solution. Accordingly, NO₃ ⁻equilibrates to HNO₃, giving rise to more acid conditions in reactedsupernatant fluids.

1. Montmorillonite Suspensions pH Analyses

As shown in TABLE 27, the following pH values were obtained for themontmorillonite used in the experiments. The montmorillonite here hasnot yet been applied to a chloride containing substance or treated withAgNO₃ (aq).

TABLE 27 pH Values of Montmorillonite Suspensions Analysis # pH mVTemperature (° C.) 1 9.15 −141.8 18.6 2 9.13 −140.1 18.1 3 9.19 −143.918.7 4 8.59 −108.5 18.6 5 9.10 −139.4 18.5 6 9.25 −147.6 18.4 7 9.26−148.3 18.7 8 9.29 −150.4 18.5 9 9.30 −151.9 18.6 10 9.33 −152.7 18.5 119.21 −145.9 18.4 12 9.30 −150.7 18.8

2. pH of Na-Montmorillonite

In addition to the data above, the pH of Na-montmorillonite was measuredin forty other different analyses. The pH values of several preparationsof the aqueous clay suspension 115 were measured directly using anaccumet XL 15 pH meter. Each measurement took between 10 and 20 minutesto stabilize. The pH value gradually would climb from approximately 7 tofinal numbers obtained. A stable value was considered to be one that didnot fluctuate for 3 minutes. Three measurements were made for eachanalysis. For each weight percent solid determination, the product wasplaced in aluminum dishes and heated at 120° C. for a minimum of 24hours. The pH values varied from 8.60 to 9.42 with 9.21 being theaverage. The standard deviation is 0.19. Weight percent solids variedfrom 2.60 to 13.99 with 5.33 being the average. The standard deviationis 4.28. The data is shown in TABLES 28-29.

Although the pH is elevated with respect to environmental waters, it isstill comparatively low compared to many bases, and therefore is safefor building materials to which it would be applied. The pH range isalso acceptable for short term human exposure.

TABLE 28 pH and mV of Na-montmorillonite pH mV Trial Trial Trial TrialTrial Trial Analysis 1 2 3 Average 1 2 3  1 9.24 9.35 9.34 9.31 −146.1−151.3 −151.3  2 9.31 9.25 9.29 9.28 −149.3 −146.4 −148.6  3 9.31 9.349.34 9.33 −150.0 −151.2 −151.1  4 9.35 9.33 9.33 9.34 −151.4 −150.1−150.5  5 9.40 9.39 9.39 9.39 −154.9 −154.2 −153.6  6 9.42 9.36 9.369.38 −156.5 −152.5 −152.9  7 9.37 9.34 9.34 9.35 −152.7 −151.6 −150.8  89.32 9.29 9.28 9.30 −149.9 −148.5 −147.9  9 9.38 9.35 9.31 9.35 −154.0−152.2 −149.9 10 9.35 9.34 9.29 9.33 −151.8 −151.7 −148.5 11 9.31 9.269.28 9.28 −149.4 −146.5 −147.9 12 8.69 8.77 8.81 8.76 −113.5 −118.1−120.1 13 9.04 9.05 9.07 9.05 −133.8 −134.3 −135.6 14 9.20 9.15 9.159.17 −143.3 −140.4 −140.4 15 9.17 9.12 9.12 9.14 −141.9 −138.8 −138.6 169.15 9.13 9.11 9.13 −140.1 −139.0 −137.8 17 9.21 9.19 9.19 9.20 −143.9−142.7 −142.6 18 8.61 8.88 8.84 8.78 −108.6 −124.6 −122.6 19 9.12 9.079.12 9.10 −139.4 −135.8 −139.2 20 9.27 9.22 9.23 9.24 −147.6 −145.0−145.8 21 9.28 9.31 9.31 9.30 −148.2 −150.2 −150.1 22 9.31 9.30 9.309.30 −150.4 −149.4 −149.4 23 9.32 9.32 9.30 9.31 −150.9 −151.0 −149.8 249.35 9.36 9.31 9.34 −152.7 −153.4 −150.4 25 9.23 9.25 9.32 9.27 −145.9−146.8 −150.9 26 9.32 9.31 9.29 9.31 −150.7 −150.2 −149.4 27 8.60 8.808.67 8.69 −108.4 −120.4 −112.2 28 9.08 9.08 9.15 9.10 −136.5 −136.8−141.2 29 9.09 9.05 9.02 9.05 −137.3 −134.9 −133.3 30 9.20 9.19 9.209.20 −143.7 −143.3 −143.6 31 9.32 9.34 9.32 9.33 −151.2 −152.4 −151.1 329.42 9.40 9.38 9.40 −157.2 −156.6 −154.8 33 9.31 9.34 9.14 9.26 −151.1−153.2 −141.9 34 9.33 9.39 9.36 9.36 −153.3 −156.9 −154.9 35 9.23 9.279.30 9.27 −147.2 −149.5 −151.5 36 9.37 9.39 9.41 9.39 −155.4 −156.8−158.0 37 9.40 9.44 9.44 9.43 −157.7 −159.6 −159.6 38 8.87 8.89 8.908.89 −126.1 −126.1 −127.6 39 8.90 8.92 8.96 8.93 −127.7 −127.7 −130.4 408.93 8.93 8.95 8.94 −128.7 −128.7 −130.1 Average 9.20 9.21 9.21 9.21−144.0 −144.5 −144.1 Maximum 9.42 9.44 9.44 9.43 −108.4 −118.1 −112.2Minimum 8.60 8.77 8.67 8.69 −157.7 −159.6 −159.6 Std. Dev. 0.191

TABLE 29 Temp (° C.) and Weight % Solid of Na-montmorillonite for theRespective pH and mV Values in Table 12 Temp (C.) Analysis Trial 1 Trial2 Trial 3 % solid 1 18.0 15.9 17.1 2.94 2 17.1 17.3 17.3 2.89 3 17.217.1 16.4 3.00 4 16.3 15.5 16.9 2.97 5 17.2 17.2 17.1 2.98 6 17.6 17.517.3 2.96 7 16.7 17.2 16.3 2.94 8 17.1 16.8 17.2 2.95 9 17.8 17.4 17.63.01 10 17.3 17.6 17.1 3.05 11 17.0 16.9 17.2 2.99 12 18.2 17.8 17.02.87 13 17.7 17.4 17.8 2.98 14 17.9 18.0 18.1 2.99 15 18.0 17.9 18.03.04 16 17.1 17.2 17.6 3.09 17 17.5 17.5 17.5 2.77 18 18.9 18.7 18.82.60 19 18.6 18.6 18.7 2.67 20 18.4 18.5 18.6 2.68 21 18.2 18.6 18.62.77 22 18.1 18.1 17.9 2.72 23 18.4 18.4 18.5 2.69 24 18.7 18.5 18.62.73 25 18.7 18.4 19.0 2.72 26 18.6 18.8 18.6 2.75 27 18.9 18.7 18.82.92 28 18.5 18.5 18.8 3.08 29 18.8 18.8 19.0 3.00 30 18.5 18.6 18.63.10 31 19.4 19.4 19.4 12.32 32 19.8 19.8 19.7 11.70 33 20.1 20.6 20.613.38 34 21.8 21.6 21.6 10.90 35 21.7 21.5 21.5 12.76 36 21.3 21.5 21.513.08 37 21.6 21.6 21.7 13.99 38 20.7 20.7 20.7 12.43 39 20.4 20.4 20.413.04 40 20.7 20.4 20.4 12.62 Average 5.33 Maximum 13.99 Minimum 2.60Std. Dev. 4.288

3. AgNO₃ Solution Experiment

In this set of experiments, pH values were obtained for the 0.05 N AgNO₃solution. The observed pH values varied from about 3.22 to about 4.6. Asshown in TABLE 30, these values tend to range low because the base pairfor Ag⁺, AgOH is much weaker than the acid HNO₃. The 4.6 reading wasobtained after the solution may be a result of allowing the solution tosit overnight, equilibrate with atmospheric CO₂, and/or be a productfrom light. However, this higher value indicates how the solution canintrinsically behave in open air.

TABLE 30 Representative pH Values of 0.05 N AgNO₃ Solution Used inExperiments Analysis # pH mV Temperature (° C.) 1 3.22 199.5 23 2 3.28197.2 23 3 4.6 156.6 18 4 3.55 185.0 21 5 3.25 198.5 22

4. Chloride Powders Experiment

In this set of experiments, chloride powders (i.e., CsCl, SrCl₂.6H₂O andBaCl₂) were reacted with the montmorillonite technology and were thenmixed with variable amounts of 0.05 N AgNO₃ solution. The AgNO₃ solutionhad approximately between 150 ml and 10 ml per 0.014 mol cationequivalent.

Specifically, 2.5 g of equivalent Cs cation, 3.082 g of equivalent Bacation and 3.944 g of equivalent Sr cation were used. Each of thesepiles was sprayed 20 times with a slurry of Na-montmorillonite.Thereafter, each pile was removed and placed into a beaker. The beakerwas then filled with more Na-montmorillonite slurry until there was 100ml of combined substance. Approximately 50 ml of de-ionized water may beadded to each beaker to aid dissolution of each respective salt. Anadditional 50 ml was added to each beaker for a total of 200 ml ofmixture. To these mixtures, a volume of 10 ml, 50 ml, 100 ml, and 150 mlof 0.05 N AgNO₃.

The pH data from replicate measurements from the resulting mixturesranged from about 6.76 to 7.61, as shown in TABLE 31. This rangeindicates that the waste is not corrosive and could be stored in avariety of containers. Examples of containers include, but are notlimited to, stainless steel, plastic lined drums, metal drums, or otherstorage tanks made of polymers, metals or a combination of materials.

TABLE 31 pH values of Mixed Waste Analysis # pH mV Temperature (° C.) 16.76 −3.5 23.5 2 6.97 −7.8 23.6 3 7.14 −17.5 23.6 4 7.10 −15.2 23.3 57.20 −21.6 23.6 6 7.34 −29.9 23.6 7 7.28 −25.9 23.6 8 7.55 −41.7 23.3 97.60 −45.2 23.6 10  7.61 −45.4 23.4 11  7.31 −27.5 23.6 12  7.41 −33.723.6 13  7.39 −32.3 23.4 14  7.47 −37.4 23.4 15  7.52 −39.3 23.4 Average7.31 −28.26 23.50 Minimum 6.76 −45.40 23.30 Maximum 7.61 −3.50 23.60

For the same experiment above, supernatant solutions were also obtained.The pH data from replicate measurements from the resulting solutionsseparated from the water mixture are provided below. The pH values arebetween approximately 6.9 and approximately 7.53, as shown in TABLE 32.As above, this range indicates (and perhaps reaffirms) that the waste isnot corrosive and could be stored in a variety of containers. Again,nonlimiting examples of containers include: stainless steel, plasticlined drums, metal drums, or other storage tanks made of polymers,metals or a combination of materials.

TABLE 32 Representative pH Values of Supernatant Solution fromExperiments where Waste from CsCl, BaCl₂ and SrCl₂•6H₂O were MixedAnalysis # pH mV Temperature (° C.) 1 7.38 −31.9 23.8 2 7.53 −40.8 23.43 7.34 −29.3 23.7 4 7.5 −39 23.8 5 6.9 −16.3 23.7 6 6.94 −17.3 23.8 76.98 −19.3 23.7 8 7.02 −23 23.8 9 7.05 −23.5 23.7 10 7.08 −27.9 23.8

5. Pure End Member Experiment

Below demonstrates an example of a pure end member reaction. Here, 100ml of 0.05 N AgNO₃ solution was reacted with 100 ml of 0.25 M Cl. Thesolution immediately turned white as expected. As shown in TABLE 33, thepH values for the resulting solution varied from about 6.47 to about6.96. This near neutral pH range occurs because the acid-base pairs forAg⁺, Cs, Cl⁻ and NO₃ ⁻ are of similar strength with HNO₃, making aslightly stronger acid in the system than equilibration of the baseCsOH. Also, this range indicates that the waste is stable for storage inthe same or similar manner as described above, where a variety ofcontainers may be used.

TABLE 33 pH Values of Resulting Suspension from the Reaction of 100 mlof 0.05 N AgNO₃ solution was reacted with 100 ml of 0.25 M Cl solution.Analysis # pH mV Temperature (° C.) 1 6.47 −10.9 23.1 2 6.92 −13.9 23.13 7 −18.9 23.2 4 6.96 −18.2 23.1 5 6.88 −13.3 23.2 6 6.74 −5.5 23.2 76.74 −5.2 23.2 8 6.71 −3.4 23.2 9 6.47 −11.1 23.4 10 6.5 −9.1 23.1 116.52 −7.7 23.1

F. Proving the Exchange of Cs⁺

Transmission electron microscopy investigation of the aqueous claysuspension 115 indicates that the material does indeed exchange with Csand sequesters the cation. The crystallinity of the montmorillonitegenerally increases with the exchange of Cs into the structure. SAEDdata show that diffraction along (hk0) in Na-montmorillonite particlesis heavily streaked as expected from the turbostratic stacking. However,the Cs-exchanged montmorillonite shows discrete spots along (hk0) in apseudohexagonal net indicating a higher degree of crystallinity. Theoverall morphology of the particles does not appear to changesignificantly.

The foregoing descriptions of the embodiments of the present inventionhave been presented for purposes of illustration and description. Theyare not intended to be exhaustive or be limiting to the precise formsdisclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possiblein light of the above teaching. The illustrated embodiments were chosenand described in order to best explain the principles of the presentinvention and its practical application to thereby enable others skilledin the art to best utilize it in various embodiments and with variousmodifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the present invention. In fact,after reading the above description, it will be apparent to one skilledin the relevant art(s) how to implement the present invention inalternative embodiments. Thus, the present invention should not belimited by any of the above described example embodiments. For example,the present invention may be practiced over water treatment plants,environmental and/or biohazardous spills, etc. Further, the presentinvention may be used for containing chemical and/or biological weapons(e.g., anthrax, small pox, etc.).

In addition, it should be understood that any figures, graphs, tables,examples, etc., which highlight the functionality and advantages of thepresent invention, are presented for example purposes only. Thearchitecture of the disclosed is sufficiently flexible and configurable,such that it may be utilized in ways other than that shown. For example,the steps listed in any flowchart may be reordered or only optionallyused in some embodiments.

Further, the purpose of the Abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent andTrademark Office and the public generally, and especially thescientists, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiarwith patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from acursory inspection the nature and essence of the present invention ofthe application. The Abstract is not intended to be limiting as to thescope of the present invention in any way.

Furthermore, it is the applicants' intent that only claims that includethe express language “means for” or “step for” be interpreted under 35U.S.C. § 112, paragraph 6. Claims that do not expressly include thephrase “means for” or “step for” are not to be interpreted under 35U.S.C. § 112, paragraph 6.

A portion of the present invention of this patent document containsmaterial which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright ownerhas no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patentdocument or the patent invention, as it appears in the Patent andTrademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves allcopyright rights whatsoever.

1. A radioactive material sequestration system comprising: a. aradionuclide containment composition dispenser, said radionuclidecontainment composition dispenser configured for holding a radionuclidecontainment composition and being capable of dispensing saidradionuclide containment composition to remove radionuclides from aradioactive material, said radionuclide containment compositionconsisting of a mixture of a clay mineral and water; and b. a sorptionbased media container configured for: i. holding a sorption based media;ii. receiving dispensed said radionuclide containment composition; andiii. sequestering said radionuclides.
 2. A radioactive materialsequestration system according to claim 1, further including a probe. 3.A radioactive material sequestration system according to claim 2,wherein said probe is an ultrasonic probe.
 4. A radioactive materialsequestration system according to claim 1, wherein said clay mineral ismontmorillonite.
 5. A radioactive material sequestration systemaccording to claim 1, wherein a weight ratio of said clay mineral tosaid water ranges from 1:99 to 99:1.
 6. A radioactive materialsequestration system according to claim 1, wherein said mixture beingrefined by filtering said mixture with sieves to remove coarse material.7. A radioactive material sequestration system according to claim 6,wherein an aperture size of said sieves ranges from 300 μm to <38 μm. 8.A radioactive material sequestration system according to claim 1,wherein said sorption based media comprises at least one mineral from apalygorskite-sepiolite mineral group.
 9. A radioactive materialsequestration system according to claim 1, wherein said sorption basedmedia sequesters said radionuclides by: a. chemical ion exchange; b.mechanical separation of floccules, said floccules produced by thecontact of said radionuclide containment composition with saidradioactive material; and c. a combination thereof.
 10. A method forremoving radionuclides from a radioactive material comprising: a.contacting said radioactive material with a radionuclide containmentcomposition, allowing said radionuclides to be exchanged with ions insaid radionuclide containment composition, i. said contacting resultingin an aqueous slurry; and ii. said radionuclide containment compositionbeing an aqueous clay suspension comprising a mixture of a clay mineraland water; and b. collecting said radionuclides from said aqueous slurryusing a sorption based media.
 11. A method according to claim 10,further including using a probe to move the aqueous slurry towards thesorption based media.
 12. A method according to claim 11, wherein saidprobe is an ultrasonic probe.
 13. A method according to claim 10,wherein said clay mineral is montmorillonite.
 14. A method according toclaim 10, wherein a weight ratio of said clay mineral to said waterranges from 1:99 to 99:1.
 15. A method according to claim 10, whereinsaid mixture is refined by using sieves to filter and remove coarsematerial.
 16. A method according to claim 15, wherein an aperture sizeof said sieves ranges from 300 μm to <38 μm.
 17. A method according toclaim 10, wherein said sorption based media comprises at least onemineral from a palygorskite-sepiolite mineral group.
 18. A methodaccording to claim 10, wherein said sorption based media sequesters saidradionuclides by: a. chemical ion exchange; b. mechanical separation offloccules, said floccules produced by the contact of said radionuclidecontainment composition with said radioactive material; and c. acombination thereof.